


Before the Sky Was Blue

by PieDarling



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Aliens, Alternate Universe - Post-Apocalypse, Alternate Universe - Science Fiction, Anal Sex, Angel Wings, Angst and Feels, Bisexual Dean Winchester, Bottom Castiel/Top Dean Winchester, Castiel and Dean Winchester Have a Profound Bond, Dean/Cas Big Bang, Dean/Cas Big Bang (Supernatural), Dean/Cas Big Bang 2019 (Supernatural), M/M, Minor Character Death, Open Relationships, Openly Bisexual Dean Winchester, Oral Sex, POV Dean Winchester, POV First Person, Robot Baby (The Impala), Romance, Strangers to Lovers, at some point, or so my beta told me, some violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-05
Updated: 2019-11-05
Packaged: 2021-01-23 09:56:03
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 54,791
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21318277
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PieDarling/pseuds/PieDarling
Summary: It started on July 25th, 2037. Dean had been only 8 years old on the day that the world ended. They called it The Blackout: the day all the adults fell asleep and never woke up again.Fourteen years later, Dean is part of the Fighter/Anchor division of the H.C.A., the one and only defense in the war against the ones behind The Blackout— an alien race that live in a world parallel to our own. Together with his brother, Sam, they soon become the star team of Squadron #5.Trouble starts for Dean when, after two years of working with his brother, he is forced to get a new Anchor. Castiel is quiet, caring, and stoic. Despite their high compatibility, Dean’s performance slowly drops while his nights become plagued by suspicious nightmares.As the mysteries of this new world finally begin to unravel will they be able to make it to the other end in one piece or will the edges of the 5th Dimension pull at their consciousness until it snaps? In this world the weak can go mad, the lost may never come back, and your only chance to fight back… is love.
Relationships: Benny Lafitte/Dean Winchester, Castiel/Dean Winchester, Gabriel/Sam Winchester, Jack Kline/Kevin Tran, Lisa Braeden/Dean Winchester, Minor or Background Relationship(s), Past Balthazar/Castiel - Relationship
Comments: 31
Kudos: 74
Collections: DCBB 2019, The Destiel Fan Survey Favs Collection





	1. Let's Not Be Alien Lunch

**Author's Note:**

> ***This fic was written for 2019's DCBB***
> 
> Hello and welcome to the longest fic I have written so far! It was inspired by Evangelion, Pacific Rim, and a niche TableTop RPG called Bliss Stage that no one knows about, and still there are no giant robots in this fic, lol. But still, boy, was this a wild ride or what?? I had to re-outline this fic tons of times because Dean kept refusing to stick to the plan! On top of that I had to deal with tons of crazy stuff while I was working on this, including spraining both of my ankles a little over a week before my posting date!!
> 
> It was an absolute madness. I really want to give my thanks to the people who helped me push this thing out the door, firstly [Kitmistry](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kitmistry) and [Jaeh](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jaeh) for all the Alpha feedback and plotting help that they gave me along the way!
> 
> I also gotta thank my wonderful Beta, [Insominia](https://archiveofourown.org/users/insominia/). I enjoy working with you so much, and it makes me so happy that you enjoy my writing enough to keep working with me <3 You were a total life saver this time around, I really appreciate it.
> 
> I also want to thank [GuardianKnight](https://archiveofourown.org/users/NikkiSage/) and [Kitsunecastiel](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kitsunecastiel/) for helping me brainstorm, as well as everyone from The PPB who put up with my whining about writing this fic, lol.
> 
> And of course, let's not forget Frankie and her [wonderful art](https://tarantulateeth-draws.tumblr.com/post/188835954817)!! I really like your style, I'm happy you picked my fic.
> 
> Finally, but not less important, thanks to Muse and Diamond for doing their mod jobs and giving us another year of DCBB!
> 
> Now, without further ado, please enjoy the fic.  
I'll see you on the other side.  
Love,  
Pie

When I open my eyes, I find myself in a dark office building with remnants of our old civilization scattered around the place. It must be a reflection of someplace not too far away from the base.

*Dean, go easy on him, please.* Sam pleads in the back of my mind.

*Sam, nobody learns if you coddle them.* I bend down, finding cover behind a broken piece of furniture.

I peek out from the corner to see if I can catch a glance of the sugar-maniac. I don’t see him, so I duck back into cover. Instinctively I begin to materialize Joanne’s Whisper, my handgun. I think of my cousin Jo, the way her cheeky smile makes me perk up every time and how I want to protect her. Soon the gun solidifies in my hand, a projection of our strong relationship. I grip it confidently, waiting for just the right moment.

I can feel Sam’s anxiousness in the back of my mind. *Dean, you know he is not used to—*

*Shh, shh, shh. Wait.* I hear something and look around just to find Gabriel aiming at me from between some rubble. I roll to the side just in time to avoid his shot.

“Fuck!” Gabriel complains out loud, he knows I saw him.

I clear a knocked over desk and position myself to aim back at him. “You’re being too loud,” I warn him.

As if to confirm what I just said, he stumbles over something. “Damn it, Kevin!”

I shake my head, this is worse than I thought. He is entirely out of cover and distracted, so I aim at him to punish his mistakes.

*_Dean_.* Sam’s voice reproaches me.

*Fine, I’ll go easy on him.* I relent, aiming my gun down towards his legs instead, then I fire.

“Argh!” Gabe complains out loud and falls to his knees to look at his leg. Then doubles over onto the floor in pain. “Fuck, fuck, fuck.”

I roll my eyes and let my handgun dissipate from my hands. I get up and walk towards Gabe, shaking my head. “Get up.”

“Damn. Dean, it hurts like a bitch.” Gabe complains, refusing to move.

*Sam, how’s Kevin?* I direct my thoughts towards Sam, expectantly.

*Stressed,* he informs me with worry.

I sigh. “Come on, let’s get out of here,” I say, offering Gabriel my hand.

He finally looks up at me, eyes red and watery. He swallows, “sorry, Dean.” He takes my hand, and I pull him up.

I close my eyes and clear my head, pulling away from our surroundings. Soon I welcome back the familiar feel of the ANIMA’s Fighter Connector, the faux leather against my skin letting me know I’m back.

I open my eyes and disconnect myself from the ANIMA. The Alien Nominal Inversion Machine, damn this thing has an odd name. Why not just call it '5th Dimension Portal Thingy' or something? Granted it is more complex than that, but I didn’t become a Fighter because I wanted to know the intricate details of how the ANIMA works, Charlie is the one who does that. I shake my head and decide to get up.

Sam comes over from the corresponding Anchor Station to open up the sliding glass doors for me. A slight frown is set on his face, but he doesn’t say anything.

When I step out, Gabe is just sitting there at his own station.

Kevin’s anxiously waiting for him at the door. “I’m so sorry, Gabriel.” His voice is brittle and tinged with worry.

Gabe shakes his head and finally steps out of the station. “No, no. It’s fine, Kevin.” He sighs, “I’m just not used to it.” He sounds more frustrated with himself now, which is appropriate in all honesty.

“Well, that’s not a lie.” I walk towards him, ready to give him a lecture. “For one thing, you should never stand around, talking to your Anchor. Much less out loud, like you just did.”

Gabe runs his hands through his hair, “I know, I know.”

“Well, then what?” I throw my hands up in frustration, “you look forward to becoming alien lunch?”

“That depends, are the aliens hot?” Gabe answers with a smirk.

I stare at him coldly, crossing my arms. We both know the aliens are not playthings, and this is not the time for that kind of joke.

He deflates immediately and slaps his hand on his forehead. “I’m sorry, Dean. I just... I couldn’t hear Kevin properly.”

I take a look at Sam and Kevin. Both have sincere expressions of worry now.

“You don’t have that problem with Sam,” I say, pointing at him. “But we can’t both rely on Sam, Gabriel.”

“I know,” he sounds far more serious now. Like the issue is really starting to sink in.

Gabriel is putting us in something of a problematic situation. He’s been training for long enough, and he showed great potential. Who would think someone so obnoxious would have what it takes to calmly clear their mind enough to use the ANIMA?

However, over time his stat balance has been changing. He can barely be considered an Open Fighter, but we hoped he could still work with Max or Kevin. To prove maybe he could find another Anchor. You know, an Anchor, the _one thing_ he needs to be a damn Fighter? Someone who can stand on the other side of the ANIMA and keep him sane enough to be able to come back home. The truth seems to be the opposite, he can only work with Sam.

We can’t find a new Anchor for a Fighter that may not ever be able to work with them. Anchors have some training to do as well, not to mention the injections they have to take to be able to use the ANIMA... makes me shudder just thinking about it.

Before we can continue our discussion, the lunch bell rings through the facility.

I turn towards the exit and motion for them to come with me, we still need to talk.

They follow in a heartbeat and Gabe makes a point of catching up to me, hurrying to keep up my pace. “I am sorry, Dean,” he insists. “I know I joke around a lot, but I take this seriously. I swear.”

I shake my head. “Well I'm worried that’s precisely your issue.”

Gabriel looks at me as we walk down the hall filled with people. A mixture of emotions crosses through his face, shock, and confusion, then worry. Deep worry as he catches on to what I'm implying: that he cares too much about who his Anchor is.

“It’s...” His cheeks flush with pink. “It’s not like that.”

I ignore his comment. “This is why I warned you not to put all your eggs in one basket.” He can say what he wants, but that blush speaks way louder than words.

If it is possible, Gabriel’s face goes even pinkier. “That’s not true, Charlie said—”

“Charlie said you are an Open Fighter, but just barely. You have to face it and you have to fix it.” I remind him.

He stops walking abruptly and with a big breath turns around and leaves.

I turn around to stare at him basically running in the opposite direction, that was not a reaction I was expecting from him.

Before I can say much Sam speaks up. “Dean, you— argh.” He huffs and runs his hand through his hair. “Couldn’t you just...” He can’t seem to find the right words and instead grips his hands into fists with frustration and turns to go after Gabriel. “Gabe, wait!”

I sigh heavily and run my hand over my tense shoulders. Maybe I shouldn’t have talked to him about it like that, but I had to bring it up. It is clear that Gabriel is far too close to becoming a Closed Fighter and once that happens he really won’t be able to work with any other Anchor besides Sam, or_ be_ with anyone else to try to get another Anchor, for that matter.

“They’ll be okay.” Kevin’s voice comes out shaky and squiggly. I don’t find it very reassuring, if anything it makes me worry about him.

“What about you, Kevin? You okay?” I put a hand on his shoulder, to keep him steady since he looks so on edge.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine...” he swallows. “I’ll just go find Jack.”

I nod and pat him on the back. After such a stressful training session it’s only natural for him to want to spend time with his partner.

Kevin walks away, leaving me alone. I turn back towards the cafeteria and pinch the bridge of my nose. I try not to give it much more thought, I can talk to Sam later. For now though, it’s giving me a headache.

I don’t really talk to anyone on my way there, but I see Benny, still wearing all of his gear. He came back from his week-long scavenger hunt just this morning. I give him a passing smile and he winks at me. Ah, yes, I’ve missed him.

Once I make it to the lunch hall I get in line and have the small pleasure of locking eyes with Lisa, who as usual slips a note onto my tray of food. What a cutie.

I give her a smile and she giggles, shaking her head. Satisfied, I head off to my usual table where Charlie is already seated chatting away with Ash and Jo.

“Hey guys,” I greet them as I sit down with my lunch.

The food here is simple and rationed, but it is far better than what I was used to years back. Although sometimes I manage to convince Lisa to make me a burger or some pie, today it’s just baked potatoes and some fish. We eat what we have.

“You weren’t there for the training today,” I say to Charlie. As our ANIMA specialist she’s usually there to make sure we don’t break anything.

“Yeah, sorry about that. Baby was having some problems this morning.” She shakes her head, “Ash and I were trying to find out what the matter was, but she wasn’t cooperating so we wound up having to turn her off for now.”

I frown. Well, that explains why none of them were around this morning. “What the hell happened to Baby?”

“Relax, she was just a little jumpy.” Charlie explains, “We think her sensors might have been set up a bit too high somehow. We’ll take care of her.”

I nod, Charlie and Ash created Baby, a robotic canine, so they must know how to take care of her anyways. I’m surprised by what the past four years have done to all of us, if you told me a while back that we would have robots again I would have laughed at you.

Before I can ask for more details Jo interjects, “how did the training go?”

“Could have been worse.” I shrug.

“Well, that sucks.” She folds her arms, “I did tell Gabriel to come be a Scavenger instead. He could be good, you know? He’s small.”

I chuckle.“Yeah, he is also loud and obnoxious.”

Ash smirks, “aren’t all Scavengers like that?”

Jo pushes him, frowning. “Hey!”

Ash snickers. “See? Loud.”

Jo turns away and pouts. I smile at her, however, fond of their bickering. She looks at me from the corner of her eye and returns the smile, not really worried about her brother’s teasing.

“You got anything cool on your last run?” I wonder, poking at my potatoes.

“Nah, it’s been pretty shitty, plus Bobby hasn’t really been sending me out much.” She sighs, resting her head on her hand. “I think it’s because my birthday is coming.”

I nod. It’s understandable, Jo will be turning 18 in a couple of months. At the start of the invasion, everyone over the age of 18 simply fell asleep and never woke up again, we call it The Blackout. Thankfully, now more and more people live past 18; still, everyone gets tense about it. While so far we have all made it past 18 I know that some other Squadrons haven’t been so lucky and have lost a few of their own to good old eternal sleep.

“Don’t worry about it, Jo.” Ash puts an arm around his sister. “I mean, look Dean’s 22 and I'm 20. Sam already turned 18, I think our fam has a pretty good track record.”

I smile, pointing at him with my fork. “You know he’s right.”

Jo nods. “Yes, yes. I'm probably not going to fall into a magical sleep I can never wake up from again. You should tell that to Bobby, maybe you can convince him I’m not less than two months away from dying.” She rolls her eyes.

We all laugh at her complaints. I guess the end of the world suited some kids more than others.

As Ash and Charlie begin to speak techie jargon, I finally take a moment to look down at the note from Lisa. I unfold it, making sure I’m the only one who can read it.

_Thanks for last night, honey._

_Tell your brother I’m sorry for keeping you away from your room until so late. I heard he is a light sleeper._

_Be careful out there and take it easy on Gabe._

_Kisses,_

_— Lis_

I smile fondly, we did have fun last night. But more than that she’s always worrying about the Fighters, it’s part of what I like about her. If things were different, I could see myself making a life with her.

I fold the note and put it away in my pocket. Things are not different though. There is no settling down, no making a life with anybody. Chaining yourself to any one person is nothing but a liability, especially for someone in my position.

No, if you are a smart Fighter you love everyone, but fall for no one. To keep yourself as a stable Open Fighter and keep the 5th Dimension from crushing your consciousness.

I finish my lunch and head out, saying goodbye to Jo, Ash, and Charlie.

As I walk down the hall towards my room someone calls out my name. “Dean!” I instantly recognize the voice as Sam’s.

I turn and wait for him to catch up to me. “Hey, I thought you were still dealing with your ‘best friend’, or should I say boyfriend?” I tease him.

He pushes me, “Stop that. We need to talk.”

I give him a measured look, I expected this, but not this soon. “What about?” I start heading towards our room again, trying not to make it a big deal.

But Sam doesn’t let it get to him. “You know already.”

Yeah, I do. “Let’s get to our room first.”

Sam rolls his eyes and nods begrudgingly.

When we arrive at our room he hurries in after me and closes the door, wasting no time at all.

I don’t even have time to sit down as he immediately decides to get to the point. “I think I should be Gabriel’s Anchor.” Sam throws the statement out as if he was talking about the weather.

“What?” My voice comes out flat.

I frown, but Sam seems completely calm for now.

“Listen, Dean. I know it’s— you probably think it’s selfish but—”

“Heck yeah, it’s selfish!” I interrupt him, “just because I can probably find another Anchor doesn’t mean that I should.” I shake my head and throw my hands up in frustration. “I'm their leader, their Captain, Sam. For god’s sake, I need to be at peak performance at all times.” I can’t believe I have to tell him this, I thought he understood it better than anyone.

“I know, I know, but the team needs Gabriel.” Sam takes in a deep breath, seemingly determined to keep his cool. “Three people are not enough and it’s already been months since...” he trails off, uncomfortable.

Since what happened with Jesse and Cesar… Since I became Captain.

I sigh, “Do you think I don’t know that?” I cross my arms over my chest. “It's exactly why Gabriel needs to let it go and get his act together.”

“But Dean, he really is trying. He is just no good with anyone else.” Sam shakes his head, his shoulders look tense. “He can barely manage to maintain himself with Kevin or Max, and they’re his friends! There is no guarantee he’ll even be able to safely use the ANIMA with someone new.”

I purse my lips. “Makes you wonder how he can even work with you. Since you are also just his _friend_.” I throw his way because it couldn’t be more obvious.

He takes a deep breath and gives me a hardened look. “That has nothing to do with this.”

“Are you kidding me? It has everything to do with it, Sam. Fighter stats are literally tied to our emotions and our feelings for other people. If Gabriel’s stats are getting out of control, then his feelings must be just the same. You know all this!” I shake my head, “it’s obvious, Sam.”

“So what? So what if Gabriel has feelings for me?” Sam suddenly throws out, on the verge of yelling. “Cesar and Jesse were like that! So are Kevin and Jack.”

I take a deep breath, doing my best not to simply groan out of frustration. “Yeah, but Jack’s stats don’t go crazy because of it and he can still work with you or Max if necessary.”

“Well, Jesse—”

“Sam, Jesse is dead!”

Sam stares at me, his lips a thin line and his brows deeply furrowed. “Doesn’t change the fact he was a stronger Fighter than you.”

I can’t believe this stubborn kid. It takes every ounce of maturity in me not to smash something. Fighting with my brother is the last thing I need. I close my eyes and take a deep breath. “Fine.”

When I look at him again Sam’s plopped down on the chair, completely deflated. “I’m sorry,” he whispers, probably catching up on what he could have done if I had not been so level headed. A broken relationship is no good for any Fighter.

I huff out a chuckle. “Yeah, you should be.”

Sam looks at me with a tired frown. “Dean.”

“What?” I throw my hands in the air. “You know we can’t fight, not too much anyways. It’s hard to not fight with you, but I still need us to be okay if I want to use Samuel’s Keeper.” I give him a smile to ease the tension a little. “And you know that’s my favorite shotgun.”

“Sure, yeah, you gotta use our brotherly bond to kill aliens,” he parrots mockingly. “How heroic.”

“Hey,” I smirk, “your boyfriend does that too remember?”

Sam goes beet red. “I— we are not— Well, not yet…” He whispers under his breath.

I shake my head, holding back a chuckle. “I think it’s more than obvious that Gabriel’s feelings are returned, no?”

Sam takes a deep breath but his cheeks are still flush with a faint pink shade as he nods slowly. “I... well I do...” It’s an awkward way to phrase it, and so he doesn’t finish the sentence.

I just nod, crossing my arms. “Well, at least now you admit it.”

Sam frowns, “Don’t be like that, Dean.”

“Hey, I'm gonna have to put up a request for a new Anchor now and force myself to like whoever I get. All so my brother can go be reckless with his boyfriend.” I shrug, “I think I'm entitled to some teasing rights.”

Sam laughs for a bit. “You do that anyways, jerk.”

I smirk at him, “Bitch.”

He smiles and shakes his head. “It’s not that bad, okay? Jesse was just too old...”

I give him a non-committal nod. He is not entirely wrong, age can make Fighters more unstable, but I would prefer if none of us took the risk. I sigh, “We just live in a strange world, Sammy.”

Sam looks out the window at the remnants of the city outside. It’s a bleak sight, buildings in ruins, debris everywhere. There is not a single living being in sight. The uncanny violet sky extends into the horizon. Fourteen years ago it used to be blue. Somehow I find that hard to imagine now.

Sam swallows, his voice hoarse, “I know.”


	2. Don't Tell

“Ya’ sure about this, Dean?” Bobby asks me for what must be the umpteenth time.

“Yes, Bobby, come on. We already put in the request weeks ago and all the paperwork has been done.” I shrug. “It’d be dumb to back out now.”

Bobby sighs and finally opens one of his cabinets to pull out a manila folder from it. “I’ll give you that, the rest of the damn Human Combatants Alliance Committee would probably chew me out if I turn this guy down now.”

I frown. The H.C.A. Committee is made up of the commanders of the other Squadrons, the only known adults that managed to never fall asleep, counting Bobby there are just six. Why would the other commanders of the H.C.A. get mad at him? Unless...

Before I can keep wondering about it Bobby hands over the folder to me.

I take it and then stare at it, knowing the name of my new Anchor must be inside of it. The name of the person who should become the most important to me if I hope to stay alive on the field sits in this small manila folder, chosen based on our potential compatibility and all that. It’s nerve-wracking.

Finally, I nod, trying to encourage myself to open it. “To an extent Sam was right. I’m an Open Fighter, I can form a stable bond with someone new. Gabriel probably can’t, so...” I look down at the folder. “Whoever this is, I have a better chance of working with them than Gabriel does.”

“I know, it’s the logical thing to do. Forcing a new bond on a Closed Fighter can be dangerous. I just don’t have ta’ like it.” Bobby concludes, stretching his neck and leaning back in his chair, implicitly giving me the go-ahead. “Even if your compatibility did turn out to be pretty high.”

I give him a smile and a shrug, then grab the folder and open it. The first thing I see is a square picture of a young man with black hair and striking blue eyes. He stares back at the camera stoically, like one of those soldiers in pictures from before The Blackout. He somehow manages to look both younger than me and older than me. His eyes are set and tired, while his features still have an air of youth.

I avert my eyes from the picture and look at the attached file. My eyes instantly land on the name, Castiel Novak. He’s 19? I furrow my brows, there is no way he’s a freshly trained Anchor.

Looking further down my suspicions are confirmed when I read that his service start date is listed as September 18th, 2047. Four years ago, with Squadron #1.

I cover my mouth to keep some semblance of dignity. I chance a look at Bobby, who must have already read the file. This is why the Committee would get mad at him, isn’t it? He just gives me a look and nothing else.

Not only is this guy from The First Squadron, but he’s also a First Generation Anchor. I’ve been doing this for 2 years and I’m considered experienced. I shake my head, “Bobby, this guy...” I trail off not sure what to say. I’m not getting a rookie, so that’s good, but if he’s been doing this for four years then...

Bobby takes in a deep breath, nodding. “Yeah, I know.”

I swallow, my throat feeling dry. I turn the page and find a more detailed service record. Surely enough I find the guy’s previous Fighter, Balthazar Starchild. I instantly recognize the last name as the one given to the kids who forgot their last names after The Blackout. All of us became orphans, but some of us were also too young to remember our last names. When the H.C.A. was formed anyone who didn’t remember their last name was given a new one, based on their Squadron.

Balthazar passed away on November 2nd of 2050. That’s around five months ago.

After reading that I close the folder and hand it back to Bobby, “I’ve read enough.”

He frowns. “The hell? You barely read two pages.”

“Yeah, and Castiel can tell me the rest when he feels like it.” I cross my arms and lean back on the chair.

He stares at me for a moment.

I return his stare without flinching.

Eventually, he gives in and puts the folder back into its cabinet. “Fine, do it your way. Not like anyone actually knows how ta’ do these things.” He shakes his head. “The world has changed too much.”

“Yeah, but it’s the only one we got.”

Bobby reaches over to open another cabinet. “Well, if you are still gonna do this...”

“I am,” I interrupt him.

He gives me a pointed look but does not say anything else on the subject. He takes out a different folder and picks out a form from it. “Protocol is still protocol.” He hands the form over to me. “You need to have Charlie check your stats and fill that out for ya’, kid.”

I groan, “right now?”

“Yeah, I wouldn’t waste any time. He’s coming today.”

“What? You were still asking me if I was sure just moments ago and the transfer is today?” How the hell was he gonna handle this if I said I didn’t want to do it anymore?

“Yeah, well. I had to make sure.” He shrugs.

I contain the urge to roll my eyes. “Sure, well then I better take care of this ASAP. I’ll see you later, Bobby.” I stand up and open the door.

“Stay safe, kid.”

I give him a reassuring smile and then head out towards the ANIMA station, hoping Charlie will be there. Squadron transfers are a big deal, and there is little the H.C.A. cares about more than their First Squadron ‘darlings’.

I can’t really blame them, The First Squadron has been around for the longest, they were the ones who paved the way for the rest of us. Sure, there are some odd rumors about them, but they lost a lot more than we did...

Plus if Castiel is coming in today I better get ready. The sooner I'm done here, the sooner I can organize our room. Thankfully Sam already moved his stuff to Gabriel’s room. Well, I guess it’s his room too since he is officially Gabriel’s Anchor now.

I make it to the ANIMA station and am pleased to see that Charlie is here. And she is training Baby.

“Hey, she’s awake!” I open up my arms to greet the big robotic wolf, knowing the moment she sees me she will try to tackle me.

Sure enough as soon as her caramel-colored eyes land on me she ignores Charlie and runs in my direction. She’s immediately demanding my attention.

“Well, she still loves me.” I smile as I pet her artificial fur. I'm not sure how a real wolf would feel, but petting Baby is comforting regardless.

“Of course she does, Dean. She had sensory overload, not amnesia,” Charlie snorts. She stands up from the floor and follows Baby, trying to get her attention again. “Plus, I programmed her, remember? She sees you as her Alpha.”

I laugh, “Right, I’m the pack leader.”

“Don’t let it go to your head,” she teases. She clicks her fingers a couple of times and Baby finally calms down, standing at attention. “Down, girl,” Charlie orders.

Baby sits down in the spot, calm and perfectly still.

Charlie pets her and hands her one of her favorite toys, a plastic chew bone that makes a squeaky noise. “Good girl!” Satisfied with Baby’s response she finally turns back to me. “So what brings our big shot here at this time?”

“I need you to check up on my combat stats.” I hand her over the form she’ll need to fill out for me. “Then give them to Bobby.”

“Woah! You? Checking your stats? What’s going on?” She asks with exaggerated shock. To be fair I had been avoiding the subject so Charlie probably has no idea.

I walk to one of the Fighter Connectors, giving her my back. There is no point hiding it anymore, he’ll be here anytime now. “I’m getting a new Anchor.” I look at her from over my shoulder.

She sobers up instantly, not a trace of jest left in her features. She stays like that for a moment, looking at me.

I can almost see the thoughts racing through her mind as she processes what I just told her.

She looks down at the form in her hand, really looks at it. “Alright,” she nods, “You could have mentioned it earlier, but I get it. Get in.” She gives me a faint smile as she opens the door for me.

I enter the Fighter Connector and settle in with familiarity. I lay back and make myself comfortable as the machine starts up, placing its sensors over the skin of my temples. The usual tingling sensation settles in and the connection begins.

Soon enough my eyes close and I find myself floating in the black space created by the ANIMA. It’s not quite in the 5th Dimension, but it’s not completely in our world either, we use this as a safe way to check our stats, going to the 5th Dimension is too dangerous for a simple stat check.

After a while, I can hear Charlie in the back of my mind. *I wouldn’t worry too much, Dean, not about this anyways.* Her voice is confident and reassuring. *I can tell at a glance you are doing well.*

Out of the darkness, the stat list materializes in front of me. One by one a projection of each of my main weapons shows up followed by their corresponding relationship stats.

*Your main relationships are strong, as always,* Charlie confirms.

Sure enough, the relationship stats corresponding to Sam, Jo, Lisa, and Benny all show up correctly and stable. I’d been a bit worried about Sam, but it seems we are okay after all despite our little discussion last week. The ANIMA shows that the relationship is still stable enough to create my main weapon and, while I think the stat itself did lower just a little, he’s still the top relationship on the list.

Further down are Charlie, Bobby, and Ash. All of their relationship stats are also pretty healthy. *Your secondary relationships are also doing well,* Charlie confirms what I just saw for myself.

She skips over the Anchor window. This is where Castiel will show up next time I check my stats, hopefully anyways. But the window is currently empty. Even if I know who he is, he won’t actually show up on the ANIMA until I meet him. I take a moment to look over the stats before moving on, all of them are marked at zero, greyed out because the system officially recognizes that Sam is no longer my permanent Anchor. Looking at it really lets it sink in just what is going to happen. Once I meet him I will have to put him on top of everyone else, one way or another. 

Anchors keep us tied to our reality, they give the Fighter a reason and a means to come back from the 5th Dimension. their connection to us is like a thread that leads us back home. Things are going to change, it’s unavoidable, and it still makes me nervous to think that next time I go out on the field it won’t be Sam in the back of my head, reminding me why I have to come back. It will be someone else. This is why changing Anchors is not a thing you do casually, Fighters need someone they want to come home to.

I snap out of it and do my best to shake my doubts out of the way, if Charlie noticed my change of mood she doesn’t comment on it. Instead, she just continues,*your team dynamics are balanced, too.*

Right on queue, our Team Chart shows up with a picture of me in the middle. Jack, Alicia, and now Gabriel show up around me, lines connect us together and show the strength of their trust on me as their leader.

I smile, satisfied, the team is more harmonious now that we finally have a fourth member. It soothes my nerves a little, this was the right choice. I’m better suited to take on a new Anchor than Gabriel could possibly be.

*Okay, so now we can look at your personal stats.*

The familiar window of my personal stats appears before me. Perception, Control, Manifestation, Tangibility, and Armor. To think that once before I had no idea what any of this meant. Now I can tell instantly that they are all in prime shape.

*You are well balanced as always!* Charlie confirms in a chirpy tone. *Your Counter Parameters are in a healthy range.*

The relationship between Perception and Control, as well as the one between Manifestation and Tangibility, are what we call Counter Parameters. To maintain a viable presence in the 5th Dimension Control and Tangibility must always stay higher than their counterparts. However, Manifestation and Perception still need to be optimal, if they are too low you won’t be able to process input properly or materialize your weapons. It’s a delicate balance.

*Your armor level is awesome as usual, the highest of the team according to my log.* Charlie, concludes with a satisfying ring in her voice. *I’d say everything is in order.*

Awesome, let’s go back to the real world, then. I pull away from the darkness with practiced ease. Moments later I'm back at the Fighter Connector, perfectly awake.

Charlie walks over and opens the glass door for me, the form I gave her already filled out. “I think you’ll be okay, Dean. You are a very open and stable Fighter.”

I smile at her, “Thanks. I know, I’m not really worried.” I try to shrug it off, taking a look around.

Baby is sleeping at her station a couple of feet behind Charlie. She must be tired from her training.

Charlie arcs her eyebrow and crosses her arms. “You gotta stop that, you can't take this lightly. Working with someone else as your Anchor is way too different from working with your brother.”

I clear my throat, “I’ll be fine, really. What’s one more lover?” I care just the right amount, thanks.

Charlie rolls her eyes. “You know you don’t have to—”

“Yes I do, Charlie. Be real, that type of connection is just stronger,” I interrupt her, “and I can’t be weak.” I frown and look away, this is how it’s got to be. I can’t risk having a weaker connection with my Anchor than everyone else has with theirs.

Charlie scrunches her eyebrows, her mouth turned downwards into a frown. “You can’t let your position as their leader dictate how you live your life, Dean.” She comes to put a hand on my shoulder, but I step away.

I shake my head. “I said I don’t mind, it’s perfectly fine. I don’t care.”

Charlie sighs but steps back, giving me space. “You can lie all you want, but I was just connected to your mind, remember? It’s okay to care.” She gives me a tentative smile.

I run a hand through my hair and sigh. I have been thinking about this, it’s true, but I’ve also been trying not to linger on it for too long. What’s gonna happen will happen, so I try to change the subject. “I’m just anxious because he’s arriving today.”

“Wait, for real?” Charlie suddenly jumps and covers her mouth, letting out an almost inaudible gasp.

“Yeah?” Why is she suddenly so on edge?

She points at the announcement system up on the sealing. “There was an entrance announcement while you were in the ANIMA.”

I swallow the lump forming on my throat. No one goes in or out of the base without an announcement to warn everyone else that the gates are opening. While arguably not as dangerous as the 5th Dimension, our regular old world is still not entirely safe, things like Shadow Hounds and other monsters don’t care what side you are on. Not to mention the fucking aliens, those sons of bitches can attack us in our world, while we can only fight back from the 5th Dimension.

In theory it could be anyone coming in, I shouldn’t freak out just yet… Then again, I don’t know of anyone else who is coming in today.

I let out a slow breath, trying to keep my cool. I give Charlie a nod. “Then I should be off,” I say to her, then head for the door with brisk long strikes. “Give that to Bobby,” I remind her, looking over my shoulder, as I close the door behind me.

The hallways are not particularly empty, but I feel like I can hear my footsteps ominously resounding on the marble floor.

If Castiel did arrive already I know where the first place to look will be. I walk down the hall with a brisk pace, doing my best to not just start running towards my room. 

I shake my head at the thought. Not my room, _our _room.

My breath picks up considerably as I round the corner to head down the familiar corridor. Every step I take feels heavy and pressured, until I stand outside, staring at the door.

I take a deep breath and push aside the slight discomfort I have knowing that someone I’ve never met might be in my room. I have to get used to this guy, I have to get along with him.

I open the door and sure enough, there he is, looking down at a picture of me and Sammy that was left laying on my nightstand.

Castiel turns around slowly and he looks just like his picture, penetrating blue eyes and unruly black hair.

His eyes look at me with calm recognition as they proceed to scan every inch of my body before landing on my face. “Hello, Dean.” His voice is gravelly and rough, much deeper than I would have expected and yet it suits him perfectly.

My heart jumps up in my chest. I care, of course, I care and I’m nervous, but I can’t let it show because for the good of everyone I have to make this work. “Cas—”

One, two, three steps.

In three steps, and before I can even finish saying his name, his hands cup my face and his lips land on mine.

I anxiously put my arms around him. They tremble as I close my eyes because I know that I not only have to get along with him.

I have to love him…


	3. Run Away From This

“Don’t fall asleep!” Sam pleads as the sun sets in the sky, turning it to that new and unfamiliar violet hue.

He shakes my shoulders as I nod off—

“You can’t help it!” I run through the back end streets of what once was Lawrence, Kansas pulling my 4-year-old brother along. “Everyone needs to sleep!” It’s the middle of the night and the street lamps flicker in the distance as we head further into the city.

I almost jump out of my skin when a loud noise startles us. I stop, frozen in place, but ready for trouble. Just then all the lights go out—

Sam shakes my shoulders as I lean against the wall of an empty building. “Dean, don’t go.” Tears start to build up in his eyes.

I put a hand on his shoulder. “It’s okay, it’s not like mom and dad. Remember, Jesse?” My eyelids feel heavy.

“But the monsters—”

The monsters follow me through the ruins of Wichita. I run and run, beating down on the desolated reflection of the city, my long legs giving me a much-needed advantage. Thanks, biology, for my growth spurt.

_Dodge the shots, Dean._

I don’t even fucking know what their weapons do, yet.

_Don’t turn around, Dean._

There is no point in looking at them, I can’t find any humanity in their eerily big eyes and their uncanny, iridescent skin. Are they just the same as the rest of the monsters that now live on the other side?

Wake up, Dean!

I close my eyes tightly, trying to will myself back to our reality. Away from their realm of nightmares.

Someone grabs my leg and pulls me into a tight space between the pieces of rubble. I hit my head as I fall down—

“Shhh.” A violet finger rests atop pink lips.

I cover my mouth to silence the scream of terror forming in my throat as my eyes try to adjust to the darkness.

A set of big, round eyes stare at me intently. Bright green orbs surrounded by an endless black, a pair of eyes that look like they could be my own in a different world. The owner of the intense stare, what would be a girl around my age, moves a hand towards my shoulder with caution, as she puts a strand of her bright red hair behind her ear.

I do my best to squirm away from her reach, but there is no space and soon my back hits a wall.

*It's okay* Her hand reaches me and it glows as it comes into contact with my skin. *You’ll be okay now.* I hear her inside my head—

I fall down an endless abyss. No end and no beginning. My head, it’s pounding...

“Mom? Mom, wake up, ple—”

I still remember my mother’s long blond hair. I wish—

*What’s your name?* What? Who—

“Dean!” Hands much smaller than mine tighten around my shoulders—

I look out the window of the old office building towards the streets down below. An army of those shadowy monsters march through the destroyed streets of Nashville. “What the fuck?”

It was the middle of the day, there is no way—

*Hey! What’s your name?* Argh, what the hell?

“Dean, take cover.” Jesse’s voice is sure and confident, as usual—

Jesse holds his head with both of his hands, horror filling his eyes. “Damn it, get out of my head!”

I try to get there, to help.

He holds up a hand, stopping me. “Disconnect, every—”

*Tell me your name, come on!*

That voice...

“Dean!” Jesse’s eyes are bloodshot and desperate.

“But—”

My head hurts so much.

“Now!”

I shut my eyes tightly. Wake up, wake up, wake up—

*I need your name!*

My name.

My name is...

My name is De—

“Argh!!” I wake up in my bed, covered in sweat and panting heavily.

I sit up on my bed in one swift motion. I sigh, glad to be awake, and turn around only to be startled by Cas sitting at the edge of his bed silently staring at me. His piercing blue eyes stare at me in the dark.

“You’re awake?” I ask him, my voice is hoarse and my mouth feels dry.

He simply nods. “You woke me up.” He tilts his head to the side slightly. “What were you dreaming about?”

I turn away from him and pat my forehead trying to get rid of the sweat running down my face. “Nothing...” I swallow the knot forming in my throat. “Just... jumbled memories.”

“Were you..?”

“I wasn't.” I cut him off before he can ask me such a dangerous question. I should not be dreaming at all in the first place, but to actually visit the 5th Dimension? That would effectively put me out of commission as a Fighter. That is _not_ what happened.

“Are you sure?” He doesn’t sound annoyed, or even nagging.

I frown, trying to place his reaction. Mostly his gravelly voice sounds concerned, and it makes it hard for me to look at him.

I nod as firmly as I can. “Yes, I am.” Then I peek at him from the corner of my eye.

He returns my nod and refrains from asking me again.

Tension I had no idea I was holding leaves my body all at once as I sigh and let myself lay down on my bed once more. It’s okay, maybe I’m just stressed. I’ll just make sure to take my anti-dreaming pills more diligently, maybe I accidentally skipped it last night. I don’t remember clearly, I need to be more careful, we know that the 5th Dimension is connected to our dreams, it is very risky to not take the pills.

Cas continues to look at me from the edge of his bed. The eerily blue light of the moon sneaks in through the window and gives him a subtle hue. After a beat, he gets up from his bed and walks over to me.

As I stare up at him I feel the sudden urge to touch him, to have him comfort me. But I don’t move an inch.

Instead, he bends down slowly and places a chaste kiss on my lips. "Try to go back to sleep, then," he whispers as he pulls away.

“Alright,” I whisper back. I don’t know what else to say to him. Despite having spent the past five days with him I'm still not completely used to this. He is a very quiet guy, at least he’s been that way for now, but I guess he’s been nice.

He goes back to his own bed, in silence he lays down under the covers and turns his back to me. It doesn’t feel like a mean gesture or even an uncaring one, it’s just kinda is what he did.

I sigh and turn towards the wall as well. I absent-mindedly place a hand on my lips. Kissing him doesn’t bother me but it also doesn’t seem to feel like much else either, does it? It’s odd... when he kisses me he manages to be both affectionate and detached... maybe. I'm not even sure that’s the right word. I know a part of me likes it, but...

Argh! I force myself to close my eyes and push all the thoughts out of my mind. Yesterday, during our first check-up, the ANIMA showed that our bond is stable, there is no point in overthinking it then, right? If we can work together then we are okay.

Doing my best to fall back asleep, my mind continues to wander. I’m not sure how but eventually I fall into a black, dreamless, sleep.

In what feels like a simple blink I wake up to the sun shining on my face through our window.

I start getting up and notice Cas already awake and dressed for the day. Clothes are not too harshly regulated here, it’s hard to have a bunch of people wear uniforms after the end of the world, there are not a lot of factories around to make the uniforms after all. Regardless Cas seems to manage to wear almost the same thing every day.

Today is no exception, he is wearing his usual tan jacket and I think I see a dark blue t-shirt underneath. He seems to be browsing through the books on the shelf, they are not many because I tend to pass them around with Charlie and Ash. I'm pretty sure Sam also took some with him, as well.

I stretch my limbs and then rub the sleep away from my eyes. “Do you even sleep?” I yawn.

Cas looks at me from over his shoulder. “You know I do. Maybe just somewhat less than you do?” He puts a book back on the shelf and then sticks his hand into his jacket pocket.

“You found anything interesting?” I finally get up and head towards the closet to grab some clothes for the day.

“Well, I was just...” He trails off. I can’t quite place if he is uncomfortable or merely doesn’t have much to say. “...looking around.”

I give him a nod but then turn back to my closet unsure of what to wear. I reach for a gray t-shirt, but end up deciding against it and put it back in with a frown.

“You should go with that one.” Cas stands over my shoulder, pointing at a green t-shirt. “Green really suits you.” I have no idea when he even got there.

I feel like my heart almost jumps out of my chest. I grab the t-shirt he pointed at and turn around. I end up face to face with him, mere inches apart. “Cas, we talked about this...” I swallow and try to keep my cool as my eyes inevitably dart down to his lips. “Personal space.”

He looks down at the t-shirt I’m holding then looks up at me again. He nods and takes a step back. “My apologies.”

I head to the bathroom trying my best not to downright run in there and hide as I try to calm down my heart, still hammering in my chest.

“Dean,” Cas’ voice stops me in my tracks just as I was about to open the bathroom door on the opposite side of the room.

I turn to look at him, begging for my cheeks to not be red. “Yeah?”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to...” He seems to stop, looking for the right words. “...bother you.”

I shake my head. “It’s fine. You know? This is your room too.” I then turn around and head inside the bathroom, closing the door behind me in one swift, fluid motion.

_This is your room too?_ What the hell, Dean? That has nothing to do with him picking out your clothes! Argh!

I rest my back against the door and take in a deep breath. Just why am I so nervous? If anything I should be trying to get to know him better, not freaking out because he complimented me!

I sigh, feeling like an idiot. I step into the shower and do my best to put my mind off things. I think about other stuff, like maybe organizing a training session or talking Charlie into adding some new stuff to Baby.

Once I finish my shower, and manage to calm down, I come out of the bathroom. I’m surprised to find the room is empty. I look around and find a note on the desk:

*I went ahead to grab breakfast. I will see you later.

-Castiel.*

I frown down at the note, he usually would have waited for me, at least that’s what he’d been doing up til now. I put the note in my pocket out of habit and then head outside. I guess it’s not like I can really say what is usual for him maybe he just wasn’t used to this place enough to go off on his own until now.

On my way to the cafeteria, I decide to stop by the Scavenger Deployment Unit. Benny has already been scheduled to leave again so he should be there. I might as well see him off since Cas went ahead already.

I knock on the wooden door but open it to peek in anyways. I smile when I see Benny getting his gear ready, he turns slightly and returns my smile.

“Hey, Dean.” He nods in my direction as a form of greeting.

I step inside and close the door behind me. “You heading out alone?” That’s odd, Scavengers tend to go out in at least pairs, not like there is a rule against it, but it’s not normal.

He shakes his head. “Nah, Aidan, Krissy, and Josephine are coming along. Seems like I’mma be in charge of the new kids.” He smiles then shrugs. “They probably are just getting lectured by Bobby.”

I nod, should be their first time out since they became Scavengers only a few months ago. Things move fast around here. “Well that’s good, then,” I smirk.

He arcs an eyebrow. “Oh, is that so?”

“Of course!” I pat his shoulder. “I get some extra alone time with you before you go out there to look for soup cans and crap like that.” I decide to pull a chair from a corner of the room and sit there while I wait for him to finish strapping on his gear.

“Now that ya’ mention being alone, where is your little angel, huh?” Benny bends down to tie his boots, not giving much weight to his words.

I frown slightly, people from Squadron #1 often get called ‘angels’ because there are rumors going around that all of their Fighters have wings. That and because they seem to be the darlings of the H.C.A. I haven’t asked Cas about it, so I decide to not comment on it. “Cas went ahead to have some breakfast.” I shrug.

“You two been getting along?” He switches to his other boot, not even looking up at me.

I partly am thankful because I'm not sure my face is still calm, but on the other hand, it bothers me slightly for some reason. It’s like he takes it too lightly for my liking. “I guess so...”

He finally looks at me. “You guess?” He frowns. “Dean, we are talking about your new Anchor, aren't we?”

I sigh and run a hand through my hair. “Yeah, yeah. I’m just not sure, Benny.”

He finishes tying up his boots and gets up. He pulls a chair next to mine and sits beside me. “What are you not sure about?”

“I don’t know.” I decide to be honest with Benny, he’s always had my back. And I mean, besides the great sex, he’s a real good friend. “Cas seems like an alright guy? I just feel really on edge around him.”

“Like you are worried, huh?” Benny wonders out loud, resting his head on his hand.

“Is that what it is?”

“I mean it would make sense, ‘aight?” He then stretches and cracks his knuckles. “I’m no Fighter, but don’t you kinda depend on him liking you?”

I nod slowly. It could be that, it’s true that the next time I head into the field my life may depend on whether or not Castiel likes me enough. “But, I don’t particularly feel that he doesn’t like me?” I say out loud what crosses my mind next, without really stopping to wonder why I feel that way.

Benny runs a hand across the back of his neck, stretching, it’s something he does sometimes when he is thinking. “What else could be on your mind then?”

What else, indeed... I frown and try for once to actually focus on it instead of pushing it away. If only just for the sake of talking to Benny. It really is not that Cas doesn’t like me, he mostly seems to care about me enough and he sort of makes a point of kissing me every day. At least once. I’d say that can be called being affectionate, right? 

He seems to be nice and to care about me, yet I feel really awkward around him. I get jumpy and nervous. I want to stay away, but at the same time I just want to pull him in closer. I’m not like this, damn it! I stare down at the floor intently, trying to puzzle it together.

Eventually, Benny gets up from his chair. “Listen, I should go check up on those kids, we should be leaving soon.”

I turn to meet his eyes. “Right.” I shouldn’t keep him from doing his job. He’ll be back eventually, he always comes back.

He smiles a little and offers me a hand. “Come on.”

I take his hand and he pulls me up swiftly. He puts a hand on my shoulder. It makes me feel more grounded. “You’ve just met, there is no way you can be sure about every single thing that quick, buddy.” He shrugs. “Besides, I think it’s hard not to like you.” He laughs.

I smile. “Thanks.”

“Well, I’ll get going.” He lets go of my shoulder and turns to head towards the door.

I grab his arm and turn him right back around to face me. “Oh, no, you are not going absolutely anywhere until you kiss me,” I smirk.

He laughs and shakes his head. “You are an absolute menace.”

Just as he wraps his arms around me the intercom system turns on. “ALERT: CODE ORANGE, ALIEN FORCE DETECTED ON PERIMETER.”

Fuck.

The alert system continues with the usual message, “This is not a drill, all Fighter / Anchor Teams head to the ANIMA station for immediate deployment.” I need to go.

I hurriedly let go of Benny and rush to the door, just as I open it I shake my head and turn right back around. I grab him firmly by the shoulder, feeling his tense muscles under my hand. “Don’t you dare leave until the all-clear!” I plant a kiss on his lips before he can say something sappy like ‘don’t die’ and rush outside.

I sprint down the hallway towards the ANIMA as the alert system repeats itself. “ALERT: CODE ORANGE ALIEN FORCE DETECTED ON PERIMETER.”


	4. Barely a Moment

*Dean,* Cas’ gravelly voice sounds softly on the back of my mind. *Open your eyes.*

I open my eyes slowly, knowing precisely what his words mean, I’m in the 5th Dimension.

I take a moment to take in my new battlesuit. Battlesuits change depending on the Anchor / Fighter set up, making every single one unique and this is my first time officially working with Cas. The suit is simple but effective, skintight, dark gray with apple green accents. It’s very aerodynamic. *I like it.*

*Me too,* Cas replies instantly.

I nod and take a look around. The area is familiar, we are somewhere around Downtown Houston, close to what used to be Interstate 69.

I frown, what the hell are they doing here? I turn to check on everyone else. Gabe, Jack, and Alicia all stand behind me stable and ready for action.

I tap the communicator on my ear, turning it on, and making a point of showing it to them. With a silent nod, they all follow my lead and do the same. Usually, we would only be able to hear our Anchors in the back of our minds and would have to speak out loud to each other, but the communicators allow us to direct our thoughts at each other as well. It’s a little invasive, can even be distracting, so it’s only used when considered necessary.

*Can everyone hear me?* I direct my thoughts towards the rest of the team, checking we are all connected properly.

*Affirmative.* Comes Jack and Alicia’s answers, practically in unison.

Gabriel’s comes in just a split second later. *Ditto, Dean-o!*

I nod and hold up a hand, we are never dropped in too close to our targets, so I turn my thoughts towards Cas. *Where to, Cas?*

*Head North, towards...* He pauses for a moment. He is probably not familiar with the layout of the city yet. *...towards the Theater.*

That’s not too far away. I turn and begin walking, keeping my eyes peeled. *Get your weapons ready.*

*Yes, Captain.* Almost instantly I can feel the slight shift in all three of them as they focus their emotions and feelings into materializing their weapons.

This is why the communicators can be so distracting, it’s not only their direct thoughts that spill through, it might be anything else they focus too much attention on.

*Twin Flamer is ready.* Alicia announced soon after, right as we cross a small intersection.

*Wolfbane is also ready!* Jack notes in a cheerful voice, optimistic as always.

*The Crackvin is ready.* Gabe adds afterward.

I nod to myself. *Good choice.* That one is Kevin’s, it’s probably better for Gabe to avoid Sam’s weapon right now since this is their first time in the field together.

*Are all your weapon names bad puns?* Alicia asks him with amusement.

While I don’t mind the banter I do tune them out so I can focus on my own weapon. Benny immediately comes to mind. Benny’s Reprisal, a semi-automatic rifle, soon materializes in my hand as I recall our quick kiss mere minutes ago. I let out a soft sigh, that was easy enough.

*Dean, stop.* Cas’ voice suddenly comes to the front of my consciousness.

I stop right on my tracks and hold up a hand, signaling for the rest of the team to do the same.

All their chatter ceases and it all becomes silent. The city, and our minds, dead silent.

I look around carefully as I direct my thoughts to Cas. *I hear you, Cas. What’s up?*

*I can sense that you are really close to them.* Cas’ gravelly voice is tense and strained as if he is in deep focus. *On your left!*

Just as his warning sounds on the back of my mind I can almost see the alien troops all pointing their weapons at us. It lasts less than a split second, but as soon as I turn they are there. I’d like to stay and wonder just what the hell that vision was, but there is no time. *Everyone take cover, now!*

The effectiveness of this team can’t be understated. As soon as the aliens realize we’ve seen them they begin to shoot, but it doesn’t matter because all they hit is the concrete.

*Abandoned car behind you, Dean,* Cas informs me almost methodically. That makes for good cover and it makes me smile, he’s not caving in yet, I see.

After I dodge another bullet and take a couple of steps back I prepare to jump. Taking advantage of that good old dream space Mumbo Jumbo I bend my knees and do a backflip that lands me solidly behind the car.

*Show off,* Gabe complains through our communicator link, sounding extra petty.

I take a peek to my right and see him taking cover behind some rubble. *You’ll get there,* I reassure him. *Now focus on the fight.*

I put my attention back on the battlefield. *Team, declare positions.*

*South of Alien troops, Captain,* Alicia reports. That means she is on the opposite side of the street as me and Gabriel.

*Behind you and above, Captain!* Jack reports in a chirpy, excited tone.

I turn and look up to see him peeking out of a window, two stories above. He probably got there with some of his own acrobatic tactics, not bad. A slow smirk grows on my face, plus, that’s a good sniping spot. *Alright, Alicia and Gabe you can open fire. Jack, cover me!* 

*Roger that!* Bullets fly at once as Gabriel fires at the Aliens on the other side.

Now let’s find out what these fuckers are even up to around here. I’m not gonna pretend this is even remotely normal, they are too far into our territory for it to be coincidental. They must have something planned.

I crack my knuckles and stretch my limbs, getting ready to run. I give one last look at Jack, all I see is his weapon, but I can feel him on the other side of our communicator link if I focus on it. I give myself a nod and sprint from behind the car to the other side of the street, further north. I dodge bullets up and down. Jump, duck, slide…

And I’m on the other side behind cover once more. I peek in between the rubble and the building to look at the battlefield. I can’t see much other than a couple of aliens stationed to shoot at us, but it almost looks like they are holding a perimeter. *You got any intel, Cas?*

*Intel?*

*Come on, I saw that clear vision of the aliens, right before I even turned around. That was you, wasn’t it?* I try my best to keep it casual, it’s not a big deal, or well it shouldn’t be. Every Anchor is different, and, while that was a bit more intense than usual, Cas is a First Gen Anchor he could just be stronger due to experience.

*Well, yes, it was me.* He admits in a flat tone.

I frown. *Well can you—*

*I’ll try.* 

I can faintly feel his concentration through our telepathic link, like a gentle buzz in the back of my mind. My vision goes blurry as I myself try to focus on him and slowly the sounds of the battlefield start fading away until I have a clear vision in my mind once more.

From a bird’s eye point of view, I see the entirety of the street our fight is taking place in. It’s only a second before it snaps away, but it’s enough. *They are looking for something.*

*I would have to agree,* Cas’ gravelly voice has an edge of hoarseness, as though he may be a little strained. I make a note to not ask him to do that too often, better safe than sorry. *We need to get behind that front line.* I clench my rifle, holding it close to me.

Cas doesn’t seem too keen on answering me. I just feel a vague sense of resignation coming from him.

I’m not entirely sure how to read him yet, so I try to focus on the fight for the time being. *Team, I need you all to break that frontline. We have to get to the other side.*

*Pretty disruptive, huh?* Gabe sounds amused. *I’m liking this already.*

*Gabriel, Jack. You two hold position.* I nod to myself as the plan forms in my mind. *Keep them distracted. Alicia, you and I will be getting past them.*

*Got it, Captain!* Gabriel for once sounds a bit more serious.

*We’ll take care of it.* Jack, on the other hand, is chirpy as usual.

I smile because it sounds like they are getting along well, working as a team. As the fighting continues I focus on finding an opening to get past the 6 aliens standing at the front line. *Alicia, get ready. I want you to sneak into the building on the south side so you can cover me from above.*

*Ready when you are, Captain.* I can hear the intense focus in her voice. 

I take a couple steps back, getting in position for my plan. It makes my muscles tense with anticipation.

Just then someone lands a solid shot on one of the front-liners, dropping them down. This is followed by two more drops and as we get down to only 3 aliens still standing at the edge of the street I know now is the right time.

*Now. Go!* I sprint forward and jump over the rubble that I was using for cover moments before. I land perfectly and dash towards their little front line, dodging countless bullets along the way.

Jack and Gabe shoot down some more alien soldiers and I cross their make-shift front line. I get my rifle ready to fire at the much more scattered troops that had been looking around the place.

This space is far more open and I don’t have much cover, thankfully I do have the element of surprise and I use it to my advantage.

*I’m at the second-floor window!* Comes Alicia’s well-timed announcement.

*Then cover me.*

Almost immediately an alien who had started to approach me from my right drops down to the floor. Effective as always.

I can’t get distracted, can’t leave myself open. I turn back to the battle when something catches my eye. The hell?

One particular alien is running west, away from the fight and away from our territory. As the rest of the aliens notice one by one they seem to turn to try and do the same. Oh, hell no.

*Don’t let any of them get away!* I warn the rest of my team, then turn around to shoot my way East. I run after the fleeing alien because whatever the hell they came to find, that one must have found it already and there is no way in hell I’m letting it get away.

*Dean this is very reckless,* Cas admonishes me. To be fair, he is mostly right I just turned my back on around eight or so fully armed aliens.

*Just keep an eye on me!* I can’t let them get away, this is unusual, whatever they are here for they can’t leave with it.

Cas does not debate it any further. So my mind falls into silence, all I hear are the sound of bullets fading into the distance. All I feel is the slight burn of my strained muscles.

The alien turns on a corner down a side street and I follow closely behind. I push myself to run faster, to catch him or corner him.

That’s when I see her.

She turns to look behind her at just the right time. Long red hair, vivid green eyes, and violet skin. She’s an alien too, but she is not dressed like the soldiers. For one thing, I can actually see her face, unlike the regular helmet-wearing assholes that attack us all the time.

When our eyes meet it’s like time slows down. I know her. I feel my chest tighten up oppressively and I groan.

*Dean! Hey—* Cas’ voice sounds so faintly in the back of my mind that I can’t really focus on him. I can’t understand what he is saying.

Then the soldier catches up to her. 

So I shoot him.

“Fuck.” For the first time in what feels like hours, my voice actually comes out of my mouth and it sounds dry and hoarse. It shouldn’t, I don’t need water here.

It happens so fast the next thing I know I'm pointing my gun at her, but I’m just frozen in place. The soldier lies lifeless on the ground, my heart hammers in my chest, and the girl stares at me with her big, round eyes.

She places a hand on her chest but makes no attempt to run away or even hide. Somehow…

Somehow it looks familiar. I’m not sure how long we stand there, but it’s long enough that I hear footsteps in the distance.

Footsteps that are followed by Alicia, Jack, and Gabriel all calling out my name.

Panic fills up my chest and my head starts pounding as I realize I need to do something before they find her. Why? Why is she so familiar? What do I do? I groan in frustration.

This seems to startle the alien girl, who stares at me in horror and holds out her hands towards me as if to calm me down.

It’s all wrong, she looks so scared…

My rifle vanishes from my hands, my brain must be too distracted by what’s going on to keep it around. It doesn’t bother me however as all at once I realize I don’t want to hurt her. 

The pounding in my head is not helping, it feels like it just gets stronger and stronger. I dig my fingers into my hair, trying to pull myself together.

Then something tingles at the edge of my consciousness, the presence of someone who seems filled with worry.

Cas…

It’s barely for a moment but I can feel him trying to reach me from the back of my mind. *Dean! Lis—* Cas’ voice seems to fade in and out of my head. *You have to—*

As I try to focus on Cas the pounding in my head subsides, not completely but enough for me to think clearly. I open my eyes, I have no idea when I even closed them, and then look at her.

I sigh, “go.”

She is just a scared girl, somehow I can’t hurt her.

She looks at me with confusion. God,_ she looks at me with confusion._ She takes a tentative step back but her face is now set with determination. “Wha—what is your name?” Her soft voice quivers around the, most likely, unfamiliar words.

I stare back at her, confused, but sane enough to know I shouldn’t even try to think about this, I don’t want my headache to get worse again. No matter how familiar her voice sounded just now I have to ignore it for my own sanity. “Dean. Dean Winchester.”

She seems to finally relax and a smile begins to form on her face.

I frown, so not only is it fear but happiness too? I grit my teeth, suddenly feeling incredibly angry. “What are you waiting for? Run!”

She yelps, her eyes filling with fear once again. Thankfully this means she finally turns around and runs away, her red hair flowing down her back.

Heh. I just let an alien run away…

I shake my head. I just told an alien my name. I take a deep breath and run a hand through my hair. All the anger I suddenly felt leaves my body, like a deflating balloon.

*Dean?* Cas’ voice comes to me with intense clarity now. *Do you hear me?*

*Yeah.* I look down at the pavement, filled with rubble and remnants of a world long gone. It’s not even the real world, this is the 5th Dimension. Everything here except for us and the aliens is only a reflection of the real world. I could blow up this entire street and next time I come it will still be here. I rub my eyes, suddenly feeling tired. *I’m sorry, we can talk about it later.* 

*It’s okay. I understand.* That is all that Cas says, his voice is calm and even despite what just happened.

I turn around just in time to see Alicia, Jack, and Gabriel rounding the corner at the other end of the street. Once they see me they rush to my side.

“Hey, what happened?” Jack looks at me with concern. He still looks like a kid. “You stopped answering over the communicator link.”

I nod and put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. “Sorry, kid, I was a bit too focused on the chase.”

“Did it have anything?” Alicia points at the alien sprawled on the floor, the body is already semi-transparent.

I try not to frown and shake my head. “No. I uh… have no idea why he was running.” Besides chasing after the girl I let go, that is.

Alicia shrugs and crosses her arms. “Well, we took care of everyone over there.”

I smile at her. “I had no doubt.” I decide to turn to Gabriel, who hasn’t said much, just to check on him before we go. “How was your first day?”

Gabriel perks up at once and smiles. “It was fine Dean-o, though next time I wanna use my rocket launcher.”

I laugh. “You are not ready yet,” I tease him with a smirk.

“Oh come on!!”

I shake my head, feeling much lighter already, then signal for them to form a circle. “Let’s go home, guys.”

They all nod simultaneously and then one by one they each close their eyes and pull back from the 5th Dimension, fading away until there is just me.

I really feel a little nervous for once, that little episode that I just had… I sigh, *see you soon, Cas.*

*I’ll be waiting, Dean.*


	5. Breathe Us In

The 5th Dimension extends all around me as I stand alone in the middle of Downtown Houston, empty spaces where once Alicia, Jack, and Gabriel stood seconds ago. They are already back home.

*I’ll be waiting, Dean.* Cas’ voice sounds in the back of my head. Hearing his voice helps me clear my mind.

I smile then take a deep breath. I close my eyes, and I think about Castiel. I forget about my surroundings and just focus on seeing those bright blue eyes again.

Soon I find myself in the familiar ANIMA’s Fighter Connector, the faux leather of the chair feels sticky against my skin. I turn and on the other side of the sliding glass door, Cas is waiting for me. I smile at him and disconnect from the ANIMA.

Cas opens the door as soon as he can, seemingly in a hurry.

I worried him, huh?

I swallow dry, suddenly wanting to laugh at myself. Sam would usually just nag me about something like this. Not that this is a common thing, but it did happen a few times when we had our first few missions. Me not being able to hear him properly, that is.

I frown a little, then place a hand on his shoulder. “Hey, I’m okay.”

“I suppose.” His lips sit in a tight line and his voice sounds very low and hoarse. He seems uncomfortable but this is not the place to talk.

I decide to get up and get going to our room, but first I take a peek over his shoulder at the rest of our team.

Jack is hugging Kevin tightly in his arms and nuzzling him with affection, while Kevin turns bright pink at the attention.

I chuckle, seems like no matter how often Jack does that Kevin will still find a reason to blush.

Off on the other side of the room Alicia and Max are sitting together, chatting and relaxing in each other's company.

Sam and Gabriel are still at their ANIMA station, I think. I can only see Sam’s back from here.

In one corner of the room Baby sits, silently chewing on one of her toys, while Charlie pets the robot’s hair.

Baby is only allowed to come on planned missions, usually for recognition or tracking support. She always does that when she is not allowed to connect with us, sit in the corner chewing on a toy. I idly wonder if maybe it’s because she is worried too.

Charlie, on the other hand, is just basically always here. She has to be on standby in case shit gets messed up with the ANIMA.

I finally get up and walk out of the Fighter Station. My body feels tired, and my muscles are sore from exercise they didn’t actually do. I hate Physical Backlash, sometimes our minds are just too powerful for our bodies to ignore the effects of the stress this puts us under and this is the result. It feels almost like being sick, everything hurts and you feel uncomfortable no matter how you move. 

I try not to show it, but Cas still looks at me with piercing concern. It’s like he is just waiting for me to collapse or otherwise lose my marbles any second now. Thankfully he doesn’t say anything or try to stop me.

I stand in the middle of the room and clap my hands to catch everyone’s attention. “Team!” I make sure to smile as well, no reason to alarm them.

Everyone turns to look at me, still with attention. The mood does seem to stay light regardless, no one is tense, and I feel glad that this is the case. There is no need for them to worry, not yet and not ever, hopefully. What happened today with that alien chick…

I’ll keep it between Cas and me for now. I'm sure they were after her, not us, but I don’t know why.

I decide to avoid the subject for the time being and focus on the team. “Awesome job today. You all did really well.” I stop for a moment, to give them time for their cheers and pats on the back.

“But we still don’t know what the aliens were doing here.” I shake my head, not entirely anyway. “I will need everyone to turn in detailed reports on this mission—”

Everyone groans.

I laugh, not wanting the mood to get sour or stiff. “Come on! I gotta make sure I didn’t miss anything, okay? I need as much detail as you can give me.” I do hope they take this seriously, though, while I have that theory I need more information.

“Yes, Captain!” They all answer in unison.

Even Castiel, with his gravelly voice, adds a, “Yes, Dean.”

“Awesome!” I turn around and wave dismissively at everyone. “You can all go now, get back to whatever you were doing.” I open the door, but stop and turn around before I head into the hallway. “And don’t pester Charlie too much. She still has to check the ANIMA.”

I get no answer besides Charlie’s cheerful laugh and a couple nods.

Cas catches up to me at the door and apparently decides to hold it open for me.

I let him, giving him a small smile.

Once we are a bit further down the hallway, away from the earshot of everyone else, he speaks in a low tone. “Are you okay, Dean?”

I rub the back of my neck, trying to stretch my muscles. “Yeah, just uh… some Physical Backlash.” I haven’t had it in a while, but it’s something normal on new recruits. I smile to myself, remembering my days as a newbie, the soreness of my muscles is familiar and even a little nostalgic, if you ignore how uncomfortable it can be. I bet the sugar maniac is feeling like trash too right about now, no wonder he hadn’t gotten up from the Fighter station yet.

Cas doesn’t really answer me, he just nods with a slight frown and continues walking in silence. His strides are hurried and heavy though, and I struggle to keep up with him despite being slightly taller.

We are almost at our room when the intercom system sounds for the second time that day. “All Clear. Repeat, All Clear. Alien Alert has been resolved. All officials and personnel may return to their daily activities.”

The announcement stops me in my tracks. Benny…

I stand in front of our room, feeling slightly conflicted. On one hand, I’d still like to make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid out there. Not like I can go with him or anything. On the other hand, I should probably talk to Cas.

Although… Actually, the prospect of talking to Cas suddenly is not something I want to do. Why hadn’t I thought about it until now? I may be able to hide what happened to everyone else, but not to Cas! He saw me just let that alien chick go.

And tell her my name like she could be our friend. What a lame joke.

I sigh, maybe I should go and take some time to think about this. I have no clue what sort of stupid excuse I can come up with, but I’ll come up with something. I’d rather not have my Anchor hate me because I let some random alien run away.

“What’s the matter?” Cas stands behind me, looking over my shoulder at the closed door that leads into our room.

I feel almost all the hairs on my body stand on end suddenly. The sudden need to get away from him crawls under my skin and at the same time, it fills me with guilt. Guilt and shame.

I turn around slowly, careful not to show how nervous I am. “I was just thinking about Benny.”

Cas frowns, squinting his eyes and clenching his jaw. His entire body seems to go stiff. “What’s there to think about?”

If there was anything that could have made me think that staying around was the better idea, that is definitely not it. I try not to freak out about it, but if Cas is already angry I don’t even want to imagine how he will react when we actually talk about the whole alien thing.

Not to mention there is also the matter of our relationship, being around him puts me so on edge my hands tremble.

All the potential horror scenarios rush through my head as I try not to panic.

“You know he is leaving today right, I just wanna make sure he stays safe!” I let out all those words in a rush, barely leaving myself room to breath. Awesome, Dean, sure trip over your fucking words when you are trying to convince someone that everything is fine.

“I don’t think you need to do that,” Cas says with a harsh tone. He then reaches past me to open the door to our room and heads inside. “You should rest anyway.”

The late morning sun creeps into the room from the window, bathing it with sunlight. It looks nice and inviting but I follow him hesitantly, deciding to stay by the door. “It’s fine, I’m not that tired. I’ll just be out for a bit.” I grin, trying to not make a big deal out of it. Trying not to take the way he seems to be digging daggers into me with his eyes too seriously.

He crosses his arms over his chest. “Dean, we also need to talk.”

“We’ll talk!” I answer as quickly as I can. “But Benny will be leaving now, we can talk once I’m back.” Yes, we will talk about the alien thing later, and also the fact that being around you makes me nervous… we can talk about that _much_ later.

“Dean, this is serious. You were not okay back there.” Cas’ tone deepens.

“Cas I’m fine. We’ll talk later, I’ll just—”

“Why are you avoiding me?” Cas balls his hands into fists at his side, his face slightly flushed red and his eyebrows arched into a deep frown. Somehow I didn’t think I’d ever see him yell like this.

Abort! Abort! This is probably even worse! I’m not ready to talk about this, nope! “What? I’m— I’m not avoiding you.” Despite my best efforts, my voice shakes with nervousness.

“You are!” He then points at the bathroom with indignation. “This morning as well, you just ran into the bathroom to avoid me.” He turns down to look at the floor. “Before that too, telling me not to stand too close to you, or saying I don’t need to accompany you to check up on Baby.” His voice grows quieter as he continues, “You won’t even kiss me. It’s always me, the one who does it.”

I take in a deep breath, doing my best to not just turn and run out the door. He is not entirely wrong, I know… Damn it! I know, but what can I tell him when I myself am not entirely sure why I feel like this? _Sorry, I am just an idiot and have no idea how to act around you?_ Yeah, right! It’s not like I haven’t thought about kissing him myself, I just… can’t.

I get so nervous and I don’t know how to behave. I have no idea how to even begin to have this conversation, and honestly? Right about now I’d much rather be talking about aliens for sure.

I sigh, then decide to just try my best to give him a smile, try to reassure him. “Come on Cas, it’s not like that. I just wanna make sure Benny is gonna be okay.” I shrug.

“And what about you?” He crosses his arms again. “Are you okay, Dean?”

Oh, so now it’s about the whole Physical Backlash thing isn’t it? I don’t know what subject is worse anymore. I really try to keep my cool, one of us has to, but he really is starting to get on my nerves. I take in a deep breath. “I already told you I’m fine.”

“You are not fine! Your stats took a sudden spike out of nowhere. How can you call that being fine?”

I swallow with difficulty, pausing to process what he just said. A spike…

Fuck that, it just ticks me off. “Whatever, it’s our first mission.” I frown and shake my head. “Stuff going wrong is just to be expected.” I decide to turn towards the door to leave before this gets any worse. “We shouldn’t be fighting, okay? We can talk when I come back.”

“Why can’t we just talk now?” Cas’ voice sounds hoarse and, as much as I hate myself for it, it does make me want to stay.

But I can’t stay while he is like this, so I grit my teeth and grab the door handle. “Because you need to calm down.”

To my surprise, Cas grabs my arm and stops me from leaving. In one swift motion, he turns me back around to look at him. “How am I supposed to calm down when you won’t even tell me what’s going on?”

“I will! Just not now, damn it!” I instinctively pull my arm away from him. “I just need some time!”

“Why?” He takes a step back and stares down at the floor, his eyebrows still set into a harsh frown. “Do I make you that uncomfortable? Do you not enjoy my company?”

“No! That’s not it, Cas.” I run a hand through my hair, then rub the back of my neck. This is precisely why I was trying to avoid this subject, argh! “Why are you so on edge?”

“Because I am worried!” When he turns to look up at me again his eyes are actually wet. His face is red, his hands are balled into tight fists at his sides, and his blue eyes are shiny with unshed tears. The tension in his body stays there for only a second, however, as he soon deflates and turns to look back down at the floor once more, seemingly he is completely out of energy.

Looking at him in this state, I feel like something inside snaps and before I know what I’m doing I hold him tightly in between my arms. “Fuck. Cas, I’m fine!” I tighten my grip around him then pull away just enough to stare at him in the eye.

He just stares back at me, his soft lips quivering as if he is trying to find something to say. In the end, he doesn’t say anything and turns his eyes away, as if he is ashamed, while he bites his bottom lip.

He just seems so fragile right now, like I might break him if I’m not careful. Even while thinking that I could break him, screw everything over, all I want to do is hold him tighter, push him further, pull him closer.

I place a hand on his cheek and make him turn back to me. “Look at me, Cas. I’m alive! And I’m not going anywhere.”

His face lights up with a mix of emotions that fight one another as they cross his features and his cheeks get pink. Still, my words are apparently enough to get him to recover his voice and he speaks up. “Dea—”

I don’t get to hear the rest of my name, as soon as I hear the first syllable leave his lips the urge to kiss him becomes too much for me.

Our lips crash together, like two magnets too close to stay away. Up until now, all our kisses had been soft and simple. Not this one. No, this one is much different and it soon turns into a desperate race to see which one of us can hold the other tighter, touch more, grab more, get more.

Cas digs his nails into my shoulder.

I bite his bottom lip.

He grabs the short hairs on the nape of my neck, pulling me deeper into the kiss.

I let my hands wander down his back.

We are too hungry to leave it at a short peck. Too hungry to separate unless it’s strictly necessary, and since it’s not we just pull each other closer.

His tongue wanders into my mouth and his hand wanders down my chest.

It makes me take a couple steps back and I end with my back against the door, but I don’t care. I’m too busy playing around with his tongue and grabbing his buttcheek. I pull him in closer, tangling our legs with each other and resulting in us grinding our bodies together.

Cas suddenly pulls away from the kiss, moaning at the friction between us. That low moan in his gravelly, husky voice goes directly to my groin were my arousal had already been steadily growing. I grind against him again so I can hear that sound once more.

He moves his hand up to my shoulders, firmly grabbing on to them, then throws his head back as yet another moan escapes his pillowy lips.

I use the opportunity to bury my face into the crook of his neck. I place a single kiss above his clavicle and take in his lightly musky scent.

He shudders as he takes in a low, deep breath. “You kissed me.” His voice is hoarse and jagged, almost like a low groan.

I sigh against his skin, “I did.”

He pushes me back against the wall, putting some distance between us just to say, “Do it again.” It comes out like a command, demanding immediate compliance.

I’m probably a little too eager to obey him because, in less than a second, we are entangled in another heated kiss.

With Cas writhing against me, and more moans leaving his lips to land on mine, I find it harder and harder to not pull at his clothes. Wanting more contact with him, my hands wander under his t-shirt.

His skin is warm under my fingers. He pulls at me, edging me to go further, to touch him more. He grinds against my leg as our tongues toy with each other once again.

It’s then that I finally realize he’s hard. Without even thinking about it I break the kiss, staring at him with disbelief. “You want me.” My heart jumps up in my chest with excitement, as soon as the words leave my mouth. It’s like, all at once, everything falls into place for me.

He doesn’t just care about me, he _wants_ me. He had been so chaste with his affection towards me I didn’t think he actually wanted me, not the way I do, anyway.

I didn’t dare to touch him, despite wanting to, because I wasn’t sure he would accept it. I wasn’t sure if that’s what he wanted, and that’s what kept bothering me. I would probably feel like an idiot if I wasn’t so relieved.

Cas squints at me with a hint of confusion. “Of course I do.”

Fucking little smartass, he says it like it’s so obvious. He could have shown it better, instead of acting so stoic all the damn time. 

Then again— I place a short kiss on his lips and rub my leg against his erection —I think I like that about him. "If you are gonna stop me," I whisper against his lips, "Please, you better stop me soon."

Cas pulls me in by the collar of my t-shirt and a subtle smirk shows up in his lips. "I have no intention of stopping."

Part of me is sure that if I didn’t already want this guy in my bed, that would have changed my mind in an instant. The other part of me is more preoccupied with actually getting him to my bed.

I sneak a hand behind my back and hear the surprisingly satisfying click of the door locking beneath my finders.

The lunch bell rings in the distance, but neither of us acknowledge it. No, instead we walk towards the bed, still kissing and pulling at each other’s clothes.

Our jackets are the first to go, both ending somewhere close to the door. Then we pull off our t-shirts, standing in the space between the beds.

I kiss my way down his neck and reach towards the thick curtains framing the window until Cas’ back hits the nightstand. He doesn’t seem to mind and I’m able to close the curtains, obscuring our room.

Thankfully we don’t have anything on top of the nightstand because Cas then hikes himself up to sit on it. With his legs spread apart, he drags me in to continue kissing him.

I trail down his neck and towards his bare chest, leaving hickeys and planting kisses as I go. I pause to play with his nipples, biting on the left one softly and pinching the other between my fingers.

Cas moans in response, low and husky, as he buries his hands in my hair.

I move further down, kneeling on the floor. I tease him, tugging at the hem of his jeans playfully.

He has very little patience for it, he grabs the jeans himself and tugs them down, boxers included. He hisses softly as the cold air of the room hits his erection.

“You’re not very patient, are you?” I smirk up at him, then lick the tip of his cock before he can even answer me.

He lets out a sigh, filled with desire. “Just keep going.”

I try not to tease him too much as I play with his penis next. I lick it from the bottom to the very tip and then slowly place it in my mouth. I suck on it gently and caress it with my tongue. I use one of my hands to pinch one of his nipples and the other holds on to the nightstand to keep my balance.

Cas moans shamelessly at my ministrations and his cock starts to leak pre-come into my mouth. He places a hand on my shoulder and then I hear the sound of his shoes falling on the floor as he toes them off. His jeans follow them, succumbing to gravity. With his legs now free he brings them up around my shoulders, giving me space to reach into the cabinets of the nightstand. It’s like he’s still reading my mind.

I keep moving my mouth around his erection slowly while I open the cabinet and stick my hand inside to search for the lube. Once I grab the bottle, I take Cas’ dick out of my mouth with a naughty pop.

Cas puts his legs back down so I can stand up.

I take a moment to stretch my muscles, still stiff from the Physical Backlash of our last mission.

Cas, now completely naked and staring at me with hungry eyes, blinks at me slowly. A small flash of concern crosses his features. “You are still tired from the backlash.”

“Yeah,” my voice comes out raspy and hoarse, so I clear my throat. “I’m still a little stiff.”

Cas gets down from the nightstand. “You still need to rest.” He pushes me towards my bed.

Before I can protest though, I'm laying on my back and he’s taking off the rest of my clothes. I stifle down a laugh, I guess I have no reason to complain.

Cas sits on top of my navel once my pants and boxers lay discarded on the floor. With his hands resting on my chest, his legs spread out on either side of my body, and his ass touching the tip of my penis he looks at me with a knowing smile. “Well, I did say I had no intention of stopping.”

Fuck, I want him so bad. This guy makes me feel like a teenager all over again. I lick my lips, aching to kiss him once more.

He reaches over and grabs the bottle of lube still in my hand. He opens it with one hand and pours a good amount on the tip of his fingers on his other hand. He then closes the bottle, hands it back to me and leans forward. He supports himself with his free hand while his other hand reaches towards his back.

I just stare at him, lips parted with awe, because fuck it, that is just so hot.

His pants and moans tickle against my skin and the back of his hand brushes the tip of my cock as he avidly prepares himself for me.

I moan as well, even that small amount of contact sends a wave of pleasure and anticipation through my body. I shudder. “Cas, I wa—”

I don’t finish my sentence because Cas covers my mouth with his. “I got it,” he says, once he pulls away. He then grabs the lube again and coats his whole hand with it. He reaches back and wraps his hand around my dick.

I groan at the cold sensation, but soon enough his movements warm up the thick lube to a comfortable temperature. By the time he lets go of my dick I barely notice it, I just can’t wait to bury myself into him.

He then slides backward, closer to my erection, and places it against his ass. He moves a little and the friction of our skin rubbing together makes me let out another moan.

Cas leans forward, getting himself into the correct position. I feel the tip of my cock poking at his wet entrance. Cas looks down at me and licks his lips. “More?”

“More,” I breathe out.

He bites his lip and nods, then slowly sits down on my hips, taking my dick into him bit by bit.

“Ahh—” I groan as he sinks his hips down onto mine, finally reaching as deep as he can go. “Fuck, Cas you’re so tight.” I reach out and clutch at his hips, keeping him still, I don’t want him to start moving too soon. “You good?”

He rocks his hips forwards, grinding on my cock. “Ah— Amazing.”

I smile, but I don’t get to tease him because he starts moving as soon as I let my guard down, and already he sets a fast pace.

We both moan unabashedly, despite it being the middle of the day. In our defense everyone is probably still having lunch, but honestly? I don’t really care if they are not.

I let my hands roam all over Cas’ body. I pinch his nipples, tease his cock, grab his ass, and every moan I get in response pushes me closer to the edge.

Despite the uncomfortable stiffness in my muscles, I can’t help but to eventually start moving with Cas. I thrust my hips up to meet his as he comes down and we inevitably begin to pick up the pace.

In one of my thrusts, I angle my hips in just the right way and Cas yelps with pleasure.

I smirk, knowing exactly what to do next. I keep my hips at the same angle, making sure to hit the same spot over and over again. “You like that?”

Cas closes his eyes and arches his back. “Yes!” He yelps out as I hit his prostate once more.

I try to keep going but my sore muscles can’t take it and I slow down, panting.

“Dean.” Cas sighs out my name, as if he delights in the way each syllable rolls down his tongue. He leans forward, placing a firm hand on my chest and using his weight to pin me down. “Let me,” he moans out and then uses the leverage he has from that angle to move his hips faster than before. He begins panting and his breath falls heavily against my skin.

A shudder runs down my spine as I feel myself getting closer to coming. “Cas,” I pull him into another desperate, hungry kiss. It’s sloppy and messy because we are so filled with pleasure we can barely control ourselves.

My hips start bucking up despite Cas’ firm weight keeping me down. I grab his dick and rub it between our bodies, doing my best to match the unrelenting speed of his hips.

He lets out moan after moan into my mouth and he digs his nails into my shoulder as he tries to keep his balance.

I feel him trembling over me. I break the kiss, panting, “you’re close.”

All he manages to respond is a moan and a frantic nod.

I feel my heart racing with anticipation in my chest and I start jerking his cock even faster than before. “Come on, Cas.” I edge him on. “Come for me.”

He falls forward, losing his balance, and giving me space to move my hips again.

I angle my hips, as shaky as they are, and start pounding into him, hoping to hit his prostate again.

He gasps in response. “De— Dean.” He clenches his muscles around me, making me moan as well.

“Ye— yes. Come on, Cas.” I tease the tip of his cock some more and after a couple more well-placed thrusts—

Cas pulls himself up and slams his hips down into my erection. He holds onto my shoulder with an iron tight grip and throws his head back with a loud moan.

White cum spills all over my torso as he shakes with pleasure. His legs tremble and all his muscles tense from the intensity of his orgasm.

I feel the familiar tingling of my own climax right around the corner, but at that moment I'm convinced I’ve never in my life seen something more beautiful than Cas losing himself to pleasure so completely. With that thought in mind I'm somehow able to hold myself back, keeping my climax at bay in favor of savoring every second of Cas’ instead.

Once he opens his eyes slowly, his body still shaking with the aftershocks of the intense wave of pleasure, he goes right back to moving his hips against my body. He moves slowly, with a hand placed over my chest for support. “Now,” he mumbles between heavy breaths, “you will come for me, Dean.” He clenches down around me and grinds against me, his gravelly voice commanding me to carry out his demand.

“Cas,” I moan and finally let myself go, writhing against him as the tingling sensation in my navel grows and expands into my climax. I come inside him, shooting several loads of come into him. I close my eyes tightly as the very last drops of my cum forces its way out of me, ripping one last moan from my throat.

I stay there still and breathing heavily until I’ve come down from the pleasure high.

Cas slowly slips my cock from inside of him and then lays down beside me.

I scoot over to give him space. My bed is not small, but it’s still sort of meant to have space for only one person. In my dazed state, I idly wonder if we should put in a request for a bigger bed.

We stay there in silence for a few minutes and I close my eyes, considering taking a nap. However, Cas interrupts me.

“Dean?” Cas lays on his side, looking at me intently, his head rests on his hand. He looks far calmer now, but there is still a sharp edge of concern in his eyes.

I turn completely as well, assuming a similar position so that I can look at him properly.

Aside from the concern he just looks so tired. I’m pretty sure he just always has eye bags under his eyes, but his eyes are also partially closed. “We should talk now.”

“We should,” I say that, but with so many topics I don’t know where to start.

In the end, it seems like I don’t have to because Cas decides to speak first. “Your stats seemed to be glitching.” Cas runs his free hand through his unruly hair, it was already messy from… well, what we just did, but he makes it worse. “They started going up rapidly, close to hitting the point of instability.” Well, that’s one way to put it.

I'm not sure what to tell him. I’m tired, and now I’m sleepy, but I stay still. I just wait for him to continue.

Eventually, he does. “It was not very long.” He looks down at the disheveled bed sheets and a faint blush creeps up his cheeks. “It was a sudden spike, then your weapon vanished.” He takes a deep breath, then continues. “I was starting to panic, but just as suddenly your stats just went back to normal.”

I frown, I don’t remember it being so damn short. From the moment my gun vanished to when I heard Cas’ voice? That felt like minutes, agonizing minutes. “It felt much longer to me.”

“Time Dilation.” There is not a single ounce of doubt in his voice.

I swallow my throat suddenly feeling dry. “Must be.” It’s not terribly uncommon, but it’s also not a good sign. Loss of communication, Physical Backlash, and Time Dilation? That is a lot of things for just one mission. On the other hand, it is our first mission, issues are to be expected.

We lay there in silence for a few moments, barely long enough for me to stop worrying. But also apparently just enough for Cas to worry some more, as his frown deepens the longer we go without speaking.

“What happened, Dean?” Cas is always kind of serious, at least that’s what I think. However, somehow his voice sounds tense and strained, making him seem even more concerned.

I look away from his intense stare, then decide to switch and lay down on my back once more, just to give myself some time. It’s not much, but we need to talk about this. “I just felt like I knew her.” I sigh, staring at the ceiling. “It makes no sense, but that’s what bothered me. I just started trying to figure out why she seemed so familiar, next thing I knew my head was pounding and… yeah.”

“So you let her go.” Somehow out of all the things Cas could say, that was the one I was not expecting.

I let out a puff of air, feeling relieved. I turn to look at him, then chuckle to cover the feeling of my nerves tightening as if they might be about to snap. “Yeah. She looked terrified.”

Cas simply nods. Then squints and puts his free hand on my shoulder. “Dean, it’s fine.”

It’s fine.

It’s fine?

I start laughing unable to hold in the tension anymore. I look back up at the ceiling, covering my eyes with my arm as I feel my heart rate pick up in my chest, but my laughter continues.

“Dean?” Cas’ voice is filled with confusion as he softly shakes my shoulder.

Fuck, what’s up with this dude? No laughing, no mocking. Not even anger or shock. He is more chill about this than I am, and somehow I can’t help but find it…

I don’t know! Fucking adorable?

I was so ashamed of myself, feeling pity for an alien? I know a lot of people who would make a big fucking deal out of it. I was sort of ready for that, but this? I wasn’t ready for this.

His hold on my shoulder tightens, insisting on pulling my attention back to him. “Dean?”

I take a deep breath to calm my laughter, then take my hand away from my face so I can turn to look at him. “Yeah?”

“Why are you laughing?” Now he is confused, staring at me with his deep blue eyes wide open.

I turn, grabbing the hand he has on my shoulder to hold on to it. I stare at him for a moment, thinking of what to say, fully aware of the stupid smile on my face. “Nothing,” I end up saying. “That’s all. I took pity on her, it’s your reaction that’s got me laughing like this.”

“Me?” He points a finger at himself, tilting his head in confusion.

“Yeah, you really don’t care?” I ask him, still sort of astonished.

He nods. “I really do not mind, as far as the alien is concerned she is just a civilian. Not…” —he bites his lip— “well not everyone is nice to them, but personally I think it’s fine not to hurt them.”

I frown. “Wait. You’ve seen aliens like her before?”

“Well, it’s… mmm.” He pauses, looking like he is deep in thought. “Now that I think about it, it’s the first time I’ve seen one in a long time.” He frowns, looking down at the bed. “A very long time, I don’t think it would be unreasonable for you to have never seen one.”

I sigh. “Right, let’s add that to the list of odd things that happened today, then.”

“It’s fine, Dean.” He tells me once again, carefully caressing my shoulder in a soothing motion.

I nod faintly. Yeah, it’s okay. Thinking out conversation is over I close my eyes and prepare myself for a well deserved nap, but Cas calls out my name again.

“Dean? Was that it?” His voice sounds soft and unsure.

I open my eyes, frowning. “What do you mean?”

“Well, how did you manage to calm yourself down, then?” He looks down, fixing his eyes on the bed sheets once more. “You couldn’t really hear me.”

I smile and shake my head, then place my hand on his shoulder. “I heard you, and that’s what calmed me down.”

He lets out a heavy sigh. “I’m glad.” Then all of a sudden he wraps his arms around me, pulling me into a hug. “I was able to help you, I was very worried.” His gravelly voice, hoarse and husky, manages to sound both intensely strong and surprisingly small. Like a pebble falling on a lake.

I hug him back. “Hey, it’s okay. I’m fine, remember?”

Cas takes in a shaky breath, but I feel him relax into my arms.

I close my eyes and take a deep breath as well. Whatever happened to his Fighter, the one he had before me, must not have been good at all. That sudden realization makes me tighten my arms around him.

We stay like that until slowly he falls asleep in my arms. His soft breath tickles my neck as I run my hand through his hair.

Just what the heck am I doing?


	6. A Blackout

“So what ya’ two are saying is that we just don’t know?” Bobby questions Cas and me with a raised eyebrow.

Cas clears his throat. “I regretfully have to admit we don’t have much to go on.”

“This is why we need to go back there,” I interject, “there is just something off about all this.”

“Ya’ think?” Bobby folds his arms over his chest, looking particularly grumpy. “How about we start with why you didn’t just off that alien?”

I frown, doing my best to remain still instead of squirming uncomfortably in the small chair in Bobby’s office. “Look, I already wrote it on the report. She was not hostile, wasn’t even wearing soldier armor. I didn’t want to kill an innocent civilian.”

“Innocent civilian?” Bobby gives me a deep frown, his voice rising with indignation. “Boy, those aliens killed your parents!”

“We don’t even know what the hell happened during The Blackout, it could have been anything.” I throw my hands up in frustration.

Cas gives me a look that almost pierces my skin. Yeah, I gotta chill. Got the message, little punk. I want to say that, but honestly? Deep down I kinda like that he is doing his best to keep me in line.

I shake my head and sigh. “Listen, I can’t force it.” I rub the back of my neck, trying to keep my nerves under control. “You have to give permission, but I think this is important. They were after one of their own, even if we don’t care about the chick we still gotta figure out what the hell she was up to so close to our base.”

Cas nods besides me, seeming a bit more comfortable. “I would have to agree with Dean, but I assume you already knew I would.”

It makes me smile, he’s been here for maybe two weeks and yet he is very comfortable in his position as my Anchor. He doesn’t shy away from authority, we are a good match, aren’t we? Just as carefully irreverent.

Bobby on the other hand doesn’t seem too amused with us as he levels us with a very heavy frown. He doesn’t say anything, instead he turns to look over my report again.

We wait in silence until finally Bobby looks up from the report.

“Alright, I’ll approve it.”

I perk up immediately. “Thanks, Bobby, I’m sure—”

“Let me finish,” Bobby interrupts, holding up his hand. “I will approve the mission, but you gotta take someone with you. I’m not letting you go out there alone, ‘specially not after what happened last time.”

“Bobby, come on, we’ll be fine!” I roll my eyes.

Εven after Cas and I sort of talked it out he insisted on putting it all in the report and now of course Bobby is worried too, perfect.

“Yes, of course you’ll be fine. Because you are taking someone with you to make sure you don’t die.” He folds his hands over his chest and gives me his best ‘I’m a grumpy old man, deal with it’ expression.

I groan, then roll my eyes. I hadn’t been forced to take someone with me on such a small mission since Baby was created.

“We will take someone, Mr. Singer.” Cas answers after my pouting goes on for a little bit too long.

Bobby smiles at him. “Kid, call me Bobby, you are one of our own now. Nobody calls me Mr. Singer.” He laughs openly at that, a full belly laugh.

I find it hard to stay grumpy after that, so I give in. “What Cas said, we’ll take… someone.” And I already have in mind who we can take, I just hope I don’t regret it.

Bobby eyes me suspiciously however, his smugness draining from his face when he apparently notices my scheming. “Who will you take?”

“Gabriel!” I shrug with a smile.

Bobby groans, running a hand over his forehead. “Dean.” He uses his ‘uncle voice’ on me.

“What? You said to take someone, you didn’t specify who.”

From the corner of my eye I notice Cas trying to hold in a smile, doing his best to keep his serious face on. It somehow makes me feel proud of myself and I have to hold back from poking fun at Bobby just to try and make Cas laugh.

Bobby continues to give me a stern look however. “You are supposed to take someone who can help you.”

“Hey, now, Gabriel can help,” I fake being offended on behalf of the sugar-maniac that dates my brother. “Plus,” I begin listing with my fingers, “Sam can actually be a ton of help and Gabriel can use the extra hours on the ANIMA, two birds with one stone!” I smirk at him, win-win?

Bobby stares at me a little longer, but eventually he gives in. “Fine, go with Gabriel,” he sighs. Then he takes the reports and places them inside one of his cabinets. “Now get going, Jo’s party is today and I still have stuff to do before then.” He tries not to show it but you can tell there is an edge of worry in his tone.

I decide to leave it be, firstly because I’m sure Jo will be okay. We will all go to sleep and she will wake up just fine tomorrow. But secondly because I also have stuff to do before her party.

So I get up and head for the door. “I’ll see you later, uncle.” I walk out the door with Cas following close behind me.

He catches up to me and walks easily by my side, keeping up the same pace. “Is he really your uncle?” He asks in a pensive tone.

I peek at him from the corner of my eye and smile, I guess it’s the first time this has come up? “Kind of,” I admit, “He was my father’s best friend and business partner, along with Jo’s father, before The Blackout.” I shrug. “We are not biologically related, but as a kid my father told me to call him uncle.”

Cas nods. “I think I understand.”

That’s when the lunch bell rings through the base.

I groan. Damn it! I was hoping we’d make it to the cafeteria before lunch. We are close though, maybe we can get there before everyone rushes in.

Cas is still a little stiff, and a little blunt, but I feel more comfortable around him now. So I feel no qualms at all when I grab his hand and start running, taking advantage of the fact that the halls are still mostly empty, to try and get to the kitchens before the cafeteria fills up with people.

Cas keeps up a good pace, but he does complain. “Dean, I’m not sure this is wise!”

“It’s fine,” I laugh, “Lisa is waiting for us.” I made her promise to help us with Jo’s gift, after all. Lunch or not we gotta get her something.

We manage to make it to the cafeteria before it gets too busy and I promptly head towards the backdoor leading into the kitchen area when Cas pulls at my hand, stopping me. “Dean, wait.” It’s a simple request, said in a low gravelly voice.

I turn to look at him, tilting my head in confusion. “What’s up, Cas?”

He lets go of my hand, just letting it slip out of his fingers. “Are you sure you want me to accompany you?”

I frown. “Of course.” I grab his hand again and pull him softly towards the door. “Come on, you can help me out too.”

He still looks a little off, his brows set into a slight frown and his mouth set into a serious line, but he doesn’t try to stop me or pull away. He just follows me into the kitchen regardless.

“Lisa, you better not have ditched me for the cafeteria line!” I call out as I step into the kitchens and close the door behind me.

“Hey, there you are!” Lisa jumps out from behind one of the kitchen counters with a pack of flour on her hands. “I had to convince Alex to leave the medical guard and come cover me, you know?”

I smile at her, feeling absolutely no remorse to be honest. “Well, no one’s gonna get hurt during lunch, right?” I shrug.

Lisa rolls her eyes dramatically as she puts down the flour on the counter. “You are lucky Jo is so amazing, otherwise?”

“Oh come on, you love me.” I fake offence at the insinuation that she would not help me if it wasn’t for Jo. “There is no way you wouldn’t help out.”

She laughs, dismissively. “Sure, sure. Just get over here, we have a pie to bake.” She then leans down and puts a bag of bright green apples on the counter. She motions for us to get over there, then turns and walks towards the back of the kitchen. “Get comfortable, I’ll go get the eggs and butter,” she says in a chirpy tone.

I never did let go of Cas’ hand, so I just pull him along with me towards the main part of the kitchen.

Once we reach the kitchen counter Cas grabs one of the apples and examines it closely. It almost looks like he is inspecting it for imperfections.

I take the apple from him and put it back in the bag. “Garth is a really good gardener, he’s the one who takes care of the apple trees.”

Cas then looks at me with a soft smile. “Joshua takes care of the garden in Squadron #1. He only has red apples, but” —he looks down at the green apples— “I think I like these ones better.”

“Wait ‘til you actually taste them!” Lisa calls from behind me.

I turn around to see her carrying the eggs and butter as she said, I step aside so she can get to the counter.

“Personally,” she continues as she puts the items down. “I think the green ones just taste better.”

I chuckle, then crack my knuckles, turning towards the counter. “Let’s just get this started.”

Me, Lisa, and Cas spend the next few hours baking the perfect apple pie. From the crust to the filling, it’s all perfect, if you ask me. Which is saying a lot because I’m very critical about pie, and if this is the last thing Jo eats, which it will not be but _if_ it is, then it has to be perfect. Granted, Lisa does most of the work, but me and Cas try our best. By that I mean that we all somehow end up covered in flour, totally not because I decided I needed to have a small little food fight with two of my favorite people, I was an innocent bystander, I swear. Waiting for the pie to cool is just kinda boring for some of us.

“Dean,” Cas complains in an annoyed tone after I smear some of the leftover pie filling on his left cheek. “My cheek is gonna be all sticky if you do that.”

“At least it’s sweet,” I tease him with a smirk.

He gives me a grumpy little pout and I can’t hold myself back somehow.

I lean in closer to him and, without warning, I lick some of the sweet mixture from his cheek.

Cas doesn’t move an inch, but a slight red hue creeps up his neck and to the tips of his ears. He blinks a couple of times, seemingly staring at empty space.

Lisa giggles. She’s sitting on a chair by a counter a few feet away, her head rested on her hand. “You two have gotten much closer, huh?”

I smile at her. “You could say that.”

“Well, that’s good.” She closes her eyes for a moment and hums with apparent satisfaction. It’s a cute little habit of hers, one she pulls up when she is in a good mood. “It’s good to know our Dean will have someone who cares about him when he’s out there fighting aliens.” She then chuckles, “wouldn’t want our resident hero to wound his ego.”

“Lis—” I was about to tease her but stop myself when I notice Cas looking seemingly uncomfortable.

Sure, he seemed kind of embarrassed before, but now he looks particularly out of his element for some reason. He just stands with his arms crossed and looks off to the side, clearly avoiding having to look at Lisa or me. It’s a very odd change, when moments before he seemed to have no issue bantering with us while we were baking.

Lisa seems to have noticed it as well. She furrows her brows, denoting her concern, but then closes her eyes, takes in a slow breath, and claps her hands together. “Let’s check on that pie, shall we? I bet it’s cooled down by now.”

With that she jumps to her feet and takes a moment to check the temperature of the pie that’s been sitting on the cooling rack the whole time. She carefully places a hand on the round pan and after a few seconds nods to herself. She picks up the pie and brings it over to me. “It’s all good now, kinda warm, but you won’t get burned.”

“Thanks, babe.” I give her a smile, then lean in to give her a kiss, but she turns her face away slightly and kisses my cheek instead. I frown, Lisa doesn’t usually mind kissing me in front of other people, not even Benny, and it’s not like Cas doesn’t know about us either.

Before I can ask her anything she looks off to the side, signaling for me to pay more attention.

I follow her gaze and see that Cas has somehow become even more uncomfortable than before. Practically making a show of not looking at us as he plays with a kitchen bowl.

I get it, I hope so anyways. I give her a small smile and whisper another, “thank you,” before walking towards Cas. “We’ll get going then.” I grab his hand once again and pull him towards the door. “See you at the party!” I glance at her over my shoulder.

She waves at us from the kitchen counter, her black hair still white with flour. “If I ever manage to clean up the mess you made,” she teases with a smirk.

When we walk into the cafeteria it is already empty, as lunch is long over at this point. We don’t walk in silence for long because I decide to ask what’s wrong the first chance that I get. “You okay, Cas?” I try to keep it casual, since he seemed so uncomfortable.

Cas’ fingers squirm in between my hand, but he doesn’t let go, he keeps his eyes downcast for the time being. “I’m just getting used to it,” he mumbles.

“Used to what?” I ask as we head out into the hallway.

He sighs and tightens the hold on my hand, but then replies stoically. “You being an Open Fighter.”

That makes me stop in my tracks. “Wait, you mean he wasn’t—”

“He wasn’t.” Cas cuts me off, then continues walking effectively pulling me along.

I start to wonder if not reading the entirety of Cas’ file was really the right choice. At times like this it becomes clear that I’m probably missing on a lot because of it. On the other hand I’d rather Cas told me himself. “Listen, Cas, if you wanna talk about—”

“I don’t.” His gravelly voice is harsh and has a rough edge to it. A dangerous edge that sounds like a warning shot.

I stay quiet then, partly to not pressure him, partly also because I’m not sure what to tell him. I squeeze his hand, hoping to get him to at least talk to me again. “Cas…”

He sighs, tension falling from his shoulders. “Don’t worry about it, please. Let's just go to the party.”

“Sure…” I look down at the floor but continue walking towards the room, trying to keep up his pace so he isn’t simply dragging me along.

After a while we pass one of the clocks in the hallway, it’s already 5pm. “We should go get our PJs,” I comment, letting my mouth say what just crossed my mind. Maybe that can ease the tension a little.

Cas turns to look at me, squinted eyes and a tilted head, he’s confused. “Why would we require our sleep attire for this event?”

I snort, “it’s a Blackout Party, Cas.”

If anything he looks more confused. “What is that?”

I almost jump back, scrunching my face with incredulity. “What? You guys don’t have Blackout Parties?”

“I’m going to have to assume that we don’t.” I can feel the sass dripping from his voice, thick with an unsaid complaint for the lack of explanations.

Alright I get it, I get it. Less shock, more explaining. “It’s a tradition here, when someone turns 18 everyone close to them spends the night at the event hall. Kind of like a sleep over?” I shrug. “We all sleep there and wait for morning to come, if the birthday person wakes up we celebrate, if not…” I look down at the floor at the thought, but then shake it away. Jo will be fine.

Cas nods in understanding. “We do not have such a tradition.”

“What do you guys do, then?” We round the corner of the hallway leading to our room. “When someone turns 18, I mean.”

“We write,” Cas answers, nonchalant. “Everyone writes about a memorable moment they had with the person.”

We get to our room and walk inside, he continues talking, with a soft smile on his face. “We then sit around and read the stories, like a…” He pauses, apparently looking for a good comparison as he opens his side of the closet and starts browsing through his jammies. “Campfire.”

I set the pie down on the desk, making sure it won’t fall, then head to my side of the closet as well.

I had never thought about it, but it would make sense that every squadron is different. There is not usually a lot of socializing for the sake of it between squadrons, mostly due to the geographical distribution and the protocols of leaving the base.

“What do you do with the writings afterwards?” I wonder out loud as I look around my cabinet for a decent pair of jammies.

“They get to keep it,” Cas answers in a flat, matter of fact tone.

I grab a set of red plaid jammies that I did wear before for Sam’s own party and look them over to see if they are still okay. I usually just sleep in some sweatpants and a random tee, I don’t own a lot of nice pajamas.

I snort at myself. A pair of nice pajamas, it’s not like it’s a night gala. I shake my head and decide these are just fine. I elbow Cas softly, nudging him to keep talking. “What about yours, then?” After all, Cas is 19.

“I still have them.” His gravelly voice is soft, filled with a tinge of something tender and vulnerable. Like Nostalgia.

I sigh, he must miss his original squadron. I walk up to him and place a hand on his shoulder. “Hey, you’ll get used to it.” I stumble awkwardly, realizing it sounds like what he said moments before. “Being here, I mean.”

He gives me a lopsided smile anyway. “Let’s just get going, Dean.”

I look down at his hands and notice he is now holding a set of button down navy blue PJs. I smile, I guess he chose nice jammies too.

We change into our PJs and head to the event hall. We get there a bit early, but by around 7pm the party is in full swing.

Jo tries some moonshine Kevin and Jack made for her. Kevin nerds out about it, rambling about how the fermentation process works, while Jack stares at him with a proud smile.

Then Jo ends up spitting out the bitter alcohol, coughing. “How the hell did people ever drink that?!”

Everyone laughs, to be honest most of us don’t like it all that much either, but it’s a fun tradition to try it out. It’s a reminder of the world before The Blackout. Back then you could only drink it after 21, but now we don’t know if we will make it till 21…But well, we try not to talk about that.

Gabriel and Sam give Jo some homemade hard candy. Gabe is pretty proud of himself for it, boasting about how hard it is to get the temperature just right. I’m pretty sure Sam probably had to make sure Gabriel didn’t burn himself or something.

Bobby gives her what he gives all of us when we get to our 18th birthday: Military Style Dog Tags. He says it’s because we are all part of the war anyway. Most of us are not old enough to remember what wars were like before now, but he’s told us a few things so we know what they come from and what they mean. Mine are still sitting somewhere in my nightstand cabinet.

When Cas and I hand Jo the pie she smiles fondly at the pastry. “Remember how my mom used to make them?” She asks softly.

I nod, giving her a smile. Aunt Ellen owned a bar in town before they moved, she made the best burgers and pie ever. Or that’s what my memory tells me anyways, I was 8, maybe I just loved my aunt a lot. I chuckle at the vague memory of her.

“It’s one of the only things I can still remember.” Her voice breaks painfully around the words. Jo was barely 4 years old back then.

I hold her face between my hands and place a kiss on her forehead. “It’s okay, Jo.”

She gives me a tiny smile and puts a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear.

After that we try to keep our spirits up by watching some old movies. We even managed to make some popcorn! We don’t have a vast selection of movies, but we do have some action flicks back from the early 2000’s.

We play a few rounds of UNO, I swear this is like the one card game that survived the freaking end of the world. There are just too many of them still out there, laying around abandoned in convenience stores and pharmacies, they are easy to find.

Eventually, with a few well timed yawns, we all decide to head to bed.

Jo sets down her sleeping bag in the very middle of the room and everyone settles down around her, except for Bobby of course, he never sleeps. It’s how he avoided falling victim to The Blackout, if he never sleeps then he doesn’t have to worry about not waking up. The few Biology books we have found said it shouldn’t be possible, but then again we also didn’t think aliens would invade our planet back then.

Slowly one by one we fall asleep and soon all you can hear are faint sleeping sounds eventually I fall asleep as well.

At first there is nothing but comfortable emptiness.

Until I hear her voice, *you have to go back,* disrupting my otherwise dreamless night.

A flash of the day I let that alien girl go fills up my vision. It’s not too awful, I think as I float over the scene.

*You need to—*

But then I'm looking at the aliens march through the streets of Nashville, 6 years ago, shooting at every human on their sight. When no one was able to fight back and all we could do was try to get away. An uncomfortable sense of dread fills me up.

*—help us!*

All at once a strong migraine strikes my senses. I feel like my head is splitting in half. “How — Argh, damn it! — What the fuck does that mean?!” I yell in pain at the, once again, emptiness in front of me. I know she can hear me, right?

*We have a—* The voice cuts, fading in and out.

“Dean.” Another voice calls out my name in a low tone.

*Come back to—*

I groan in frustration as the migraine gets worse.

“Dean!” The other voice calls for me again and I feel someone shaking my shoulder.

Startled, I open my eyes. I squint around in the darkness, trying to figure out what’s going on.

I see that it’s Cas who woke me up. His hand rests on my shoulder and his eyebrows are bent with concern.

“Cas?” I try to get up but he stops me.

“Shh.” He places a finger over his lips. “You had another nightmare,” he whispers in his gravelly voice. He pats my arm in a reassuring gesture and then turns back towards his own sleeping bag. “Try to sleep properly.”

I reach for his hand and stop him from leaving.

He looks at me over his shoulder, waiting for me to speak.

“Come with me, outside?”

Cas blinks at me a few times, but he still gives me a nod and then stands up, making sure not to make a sound. 

We both tiptoe out of the hall, making sure not to step over anyone in the process.

Once we are outside we sit down on the floor, our backs against the wall. The hallway that leads to the Event Hall is one of the few hallways with windows that face towards the outside of the base. From the spot that we sit at we face one of them and can see the night sky just perfectly. A deep shade of purple splashed with stars, it’s quite beautiful.

We stay in silence for a few minutes, I try to just enjoy his company and he doesn’t really say much either.

After I’ve gathered my thoughts a little I finally speak up. “It was her again, Cas.” That is all I have to say because Cas already knows, what my dreams are like, and what I’m referring too.

“What did she say this time?” He tilts his head to the side, like a curious kid.

I take a deep breath and look at the ceiling. “I have no idea,” I admit. “She said she needed help with something…” I trail off.

After a small pause I groan, “This is stupid.”

Cas reaches for my hand. “Hey, it’s not stupid, okay? We already got Bobby to approve that mission, we will figure this out.”

I let my head fall on his shoulder with a sigh. “I hope you are right…”


	7. Interlude || Drowsy

By the time the sun starts rising up in the sky, Dean has already fallen asleep once more. Resting his head against my shoulder he breathes in and out softly as I watch over him.

Certainly, his sleep seems far more peaceful here in the hallway than it did inside of the Event Hall.

He’s been asleep for a while, but I couldn’t find it in me to wake him up. I try to tell myself that it’s really not because of my jealousy, not because I want to keep him away from everyone else and monopolize his time.

No, it’s just because he needs to rest. He hasn’t been sleeping properly, not with all these dreams he’s been having.

Still, with the sun up in the sky, it’s bright rays landing on his dirty blond hair, I know it’s time I shake him awake. Even if Dean is not a morning person, he wouldn’t like to miss this particular morning.

I shake his shoulder softly and he begins to open his eyes.

“Cas?” His voice is hoarse and low, laced with sleep.

“Yes, Dean. You fell asleep.” I point at the window, outside the sky is it’s usual shade of violet, traces of pink here and there that tint the clouds slightly covering the sun. “It’s morning already.”

He nods and then stands up, stretching himself with a yawn. He looks around, a little confused, and I try not to obsess over how empty my shoulder feels.

Eventually, he seems to have woken up properly and turns to the door leading to the Event Hall. “Is anyone else awake?” He asks.

I shake my head and resolve to stand up as well. “I don’t think so. I haven’t seen anyone else come out or heard anything at all.”

Dean frowns. “Don’t you ever sleep?”

I smile at him and shrug. “Sometimes.” The truth is I don’t sleep much… not since I became an Anchor, for us that should be normal… Right? I idly wonder if Sam has an easier time sleeping than I do, maybe I should ask him about it sometime.

Dean doesn’t dwell on the subject, he heads for the door and says, “Well, we should wake the others up then.” Despite his even tone, I notice that his shoulders look tense and stiff as he places his hand on the handle.

I place my hand on his shoulder, trying to give him some support. “She’ll wake up,” I assure him.

Dean gives me a faint nod and opens the door. With a slow creak, we both take a peek inside and find that the room is still and silent as everyone is sleeping.

Bobby sits in one corner, his nose stuck in some kind of old war fiction novel. He looks up and when he sees us at the door he puts down the book, getting up from his chair. He walks towards us, making sure not to accidentally wake someone up. “There you are, boys, I was wondering when you slipped out.” He frowns a little but doesn’t seem to be angry.

“We couldn’t sleep well.” Dean shrugs, he doesn’t mention why, but he doesn’t have to.

I remember when Hannah turned 18 last year, I couldn’t sleep at all. She’s like a sister to me and I was too worried to fall asleep. It’s reasonable Dean would have similar troubles, even if I know very well that wasn’t it.

Bobby doesn’t dig into it any further he just gives a curt nod and then points over his shoulder and everyone else. “Shall we wake ‘em up, then?”

Dean looks at him and, in that moment, I really get the sense that they are family. Despite their small disagreement the day before, it’s clear that they don’t have any animosity between each other.

Dean gives him a short nod. “Let’s go.”

And with that, they begin to wake up the rest of the people in the Event Hall. One by one they are silently shaken awake, some moving to wake the others around them as well, while others sit under their blankets trying to chase the sleep away.

They are careful not to accidentally disturb Jo, however. It is not until everyone is awake, forming a circle around her, that Ash slowly shakes her shoulders.

“Jo, come on, it’s morning.” Ash’s voice trembles with uncertainty and careful worry.

When she doesn’t show any signs of reacting Ash shakes her shoulders with more force. “Jo! Come on, wake up!” He clearly begins to panic as his eyes shine with unshed tears and he starts to shake her more violently.

Dean and Bobby, who are standing next to Ash, each place a hand on his shoulders.

I wonder if I should get closer, to be there for Dean, but as the air begins to fill up with tension I find it harder and harder to make that move and keep watching the scene unfold further apart from him.

Ash continues trying to wake his sister up, ignoring the hands resting on his shoulders. “Wake up, damn it! Joanne Harvelle you better open your eyes right now or I—” Ash starts as if it was the beginning of a lecture, but he loses his bravado and his voice breaks. “Or I— I swear I…”

Ash lowers his head and takes his sister’s hand in his, pain reflecting in his eyes.

That’s when Jo chuckles.

We are all startled for a second.

Jo continues to laugh. She rolls on her side and between chuckles and sighs she says, “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I couldn’t help myself.”

Ash is the first one to react, no longer feeling sad at all. “Jo, you cunt! I actually thought you had blacked out!” He takes a pillow that was lying close by and strikes his sister with it.

Bobby shakes his head and sighs. “Did you really need to scare us like that?”

Jo gives him a smile and a shrug. “Well, I had to make sure Ash did care about me, right? Such a nice big brother!” She finishes the sentence with a baby voice and blows her brother a kiss.

Ash goes red, in what seems to be a mixture of embarrassment and anger. “I’ll show you how much I care about you!” He exclaims almost as if it was a battle cry and proceeds to repeatedly hit Jo with the pillow over and over, without giving her much of a break.

Jo laughs again. “Come on Ash, don’t be a kid.” She tries to defend herself with her arms but her efforts are futile, so she grabs another pillow. “At least make it a fair fight!” She exclaims as she starts hitting her brother as well.

The two of them get progressively more and more involved in their pillow fight until soon the people around them begin to join in.

Not me though, no… I uh… 

I squish myself in between all the people running around, hitting each other with pillows, and slowly back away towards the wall.

I don’t know what to do.

They are all so recklessly playing, having fun, and I am not used to this kind of thing. Back in Squadron #1 everyone is calm and collected all the time, but I guess we have to be... Not that we don’t have fun, it’s just… different.

To be perfectly honest, I miss it. I miss things being quieter, I miss Hannah, Inias, and Alfie…

I miss Balthazar… right? Why did I only think about him now? A pang of guilt fills up my chest and it feels like it’s crushing me from the inside.

I bite my lip, I don’t think I want to be here.

I contemplate leaving and heading back to the bedroom. I turn to the door, there is no one over there, I could just make a run for it and leave the Event Hall. I’m pretty sure Bobby left too… probably.

I have basically convinced myself to leave when I suddenly hear Dean’s laughter. I cannot help the way my heart jumps up in my chest at the sound, even if I know in my head that I probably had nothing to do with it. Dean’s laugh completely captures my attention, and so... I don’t leave.

I turn back towards the crowd of people. I scan the room until I find him and my heart rattles in my chest again at the sight.

Dean is running around with Sam, Ash, Charlie, and Jo. The two girls seem to have teamed up, covering each other’s backs as the boys rush at them armed with pillows.

It’s like they are all in their own little world, not paying attention to much else outside of the ensuing pillow fight. Dean looks too happy, smiling from ear to ear as he mercilessly hits Charlie and Jo with his pillow.

As they continue to run around Sam starts falling behind. He almost trips when Gabriel grabs him by his t-shirt after sneaking around one of the pillars of the room. Clearly, Gabriel planned on stealing Sam away from the game, and it works pretty well…

A part of me wishes I could do the same, just go up to Dean and grab him for myself, but I can’t. It’s not my place to be possessive with him, I knew very well what I was getting into when I decided to be his Anchor.

I turn my eyes down towards the floor and swallow the thick knot forming on my throat.

I know I made this choice by myself, I just didn’t think it would be this hard to deal with…

“Hey, Cas!”

I look up just in time to see Dean rushing towards me and before I have any time to react he tackles me. Thankfully we fall into a pile of cushions and bedsheets and we don’t seem to get hurt.

Dean laughs, laying over me. “What are you even doing, Cas?” He supports his weight on his hands and looks me in the eyes, his expression filled with amusement.

“Nothing much,” I reply in the most well-composed tone I can muster.

“Really now?” He purses his lips as if to let me know he is not sure if he believes me.

I try to find a sufficient way to phrase the reality of the situation but I don’t get the chance to, Dean kisses me instead. It’s a quick kiss, soft and warm, and it sends a sweet tingle under my skin.

I tangle my finger in his hair as he pulls away with a smirk.

“You should join the pillow fight, come on.” He rests his forehead on my shoulder and nuzzles the crook of my neck tenderly. “You’ll be in my team,” he whispers.

I smile at him. “Okay.”

As soon as he heard that he rushes to get up and, holding my hand, pulls me up after him. He pulls me along the whole time, never letting go of my hand, and we do make a good team.

I squish his hand in mine, letting myself relish the contact of our skin.

Maybe I’ll get used to this, maybe I won’t, but either way, I’ll stay.

I’ll stay with Dean.

I’ll stay, and I’ll help him figure out what’s going on with his dreams and that alien girl.

Because Dean gives me hope.


	8. Violet Skin

“Dean, you came.” That strange voice should not sound so familiar, I know that. Still, I can't help that the first thought that crosses through my mind is ‘there she is.’

I turn around and I should be surprised, but I’m not at all when I see that alien girl standing at the other end of the alley with the same red hair, violet skin, and green eyes. A messenger style bag is strapped across her shoulder, it looks heavy and bulky. I see no sign of a weapon, and I probably shouldn’t trust that, but at the moment I do. Then again, I can pull a weapon out of thin air, who says she can’t do the same?

“You didn’t give me much choice, did you?” Is this wise? Probably not, I should be pointing a gun at her. Fixing what I did wrong last time, or at least demanding for her to stop pestering me in my dreams. “And yet I don’t even know your name.”

“I apologize.” She walks towards me with her hand extended towards me for a handshake, it’s such a human gesture. Unlike any interaction I’ve ever had with any alien ever before, mostly. “My name is Annael’stierck.”

I arc an eyebrow but resolve to take her hand, “you got anything shorter?”

“Anna.” She finally reaches me and we shake hands. She continues to speak without losing a single beat as though she means nothing but business. “We need your help.”

“Listen,” I point at her with a finger, “Start from the very top, girl. Who is ‘we’?” I give her a firm handshake and my best impression of someone you should not mess with. Like Han Solo.

*You are nothing like Han Solo.* Cas chuckles in the back of my mind.

I have to stop myself from rolling my eyes, but I do send the sentiment his way. *Come on, I’ve at least got the style.* I'm honestly a little surprised that he’d be joking now, but my attention doesn’t stay there for long.

“Please, refrain from joking with your mate, this is serious.”

I almost jump out of my skin when she says that and I immediately let go of her hand. “You were in my head.” It stings, and a deep frown settles on my eyebrows.

Cas also bristles at the notion, I feel the uncomfortable push of his annoyance and suspicion around the edges of my mind despite him not vocalizing it.

Anna takes a step back, realizing she has offended me, and her features soften. “I’m sorry, it’s the skin contact, it can not be helped.” She holds her own hand in a very meek gesture. “Can we keep talking?”

Her sudden change of attitude almost gives me whiplash, it’s like talking to two different people.

I stare ahead for a moment but finally resolve to give her a nod and let her continue to lead the conversation. I have the vague notion that she has planned this somehow, but I'm not sure why I think that.

She clears her throat and slips back into her all business-like demeanor. “When I say we, I mean the rebels. I am their leader and you have to help us, Dean Winchester.”

I can feel Cas squinting in the back of my head, with suspicion. *We need more information than just that.*

I send my agreement his way and direct my attention to Anna again. “What are you rebelling against? I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but your people and my people don’t get along enough for me to have any idea what the hell is going on.”

Anna nods, her features remain stern. “I am aware, Dean. We have a queen.” She pauses for a moment and takes a folded paper out of her pocket she unfolds it and shows it to me.

The Queen, I assume, has fiery red hair and bright amber eyes. Her skin is a dark magenta tone and she is completely dressed in dark red.

After a moment Anna folds the picture and places it back into her pocket. “And she needs to go,” Anna’s voice concludes grimly.

I frown. Yes, monarchies are not perfect. Not from what little I recall from the few history books we have found, or what Bobby has told us in passing, but that’s hardly a strong argument.

Anna seems to have prepared for this, however. She is not deterred by my disbelief, instead, she offers me her hand. “Let me show you why?”

I stare at her hand. *Should we trust her?* I ask Cas through our connection.

*We have already come this far.*

He is right, and so I take her hand.

This time I feel her presence in my mind, she is cautious and careful but she makes her presence known. *Close your eyes.*

I do as she says and my field of vision goes black, but not for long. Soon after a new image fades into focus, it’s far away, farther away than I have ever been, and it is a terrible sight.

I can tell this place used to be overflowing with life, even in rural cities now you can find lots of plants and animals. Not here though, no, there is nothing here. The grass is blackened, dead. The trees are ghostly pale, they have no bark. Not a single living thing is in sight, not even something gnarly.

Even the sky looks off, it’s color dulled due to a thin layer of white fog that covers the entire place as far as I can see.

*What is this?*

*Your Earth is sick, and it is dying.* Anna’s voice answers inside my head, there is a tinge of pain in her tone. *Our last planet is gone now, that was not our fault.* There is a small pause and I can feel the shift in her as her anger and passion for her cause show up through our temporary connection. *This, however? This _is_ our fault, but we can still save The Earth if only the Queen would listen.*

*Why is this happening?* This time it is Cas who prompts her for more information, he sounds concerned as well.

*It’s the division between the dimensions, the separation is putting a strain in the planet’s core. It’s killing it, and everything that lives on it.* Anna’s voice comes back at us hard and grave, a severe tone that hardly fits her kind features.

My vision shifts and we are instead standing on a hill overlooking an unfamiliar city.

*France* Cas says, and I feel him pulling my attention towards the Eiffel Tower, I recognize it from some travel books I had seen around years back.

However there is a slight change, from the top of the tower a beacon of iridescent light extends up to the sky.

*Just what is that?* I ask, incredulous.

*It’s a dimensional pillar.* Anna’s voice answers without hesitation, she does not sound surprised in the least. *There are many of this around planet Earth now. You can’t see them from your side, but they are what keep our dimensions separate from one another. If we destroy them we can unify the dimensions once more and save the earth.*

Anna changes our scenery, France fades away, and she shows us the other pillars: Egypt, Japan, New York, Brazil… There are tons of them, and they are all attached to a tall and prominent structure.

I stare in awe at the display of her powers. Space in the 5th Dimension works differently than in our physical dimension, we can travel faster, some people even teleport a few miles, but humans had never been able to do anything like this. I had never seen any of these places outside of dirty, crumbled photographs from before The Blackout, it’s amazing. They are… destroyed and unkempt, but they are still mesmerizing.

Anna continues with her explanation, unfazed by my gawking at the scenery. *But, of course, the Queen refuses to listen to reason. She put them there in the first place and now would rather have another planet die on us than allow our people to mingle with yours.* I can hear the air quotes in her voice when she says the word ‘mingle’ and a small part of me is taken aback by such a human expression, the rest of me is just a little angry.

*So take over then, just force her!* My voice resounds with far more fervor than I anticipated, and maybe that means I'm more bothered by it than I thought.

*We have been opposing her for years now but to no avail. She is a very powerful telepath, taking her by surprise is no easy task.* Anna’s own bravado doesn’t fall too far behind mine, her voice drips with frustration. *What’s more she has coded a Gene Signature into the pillars, the only one who can come into contact with them and survive is her.* Her voice falters softly as she continues, far more concerned than furious. *We have run out of options and, subsequently, we are running out of time.*

*Well, that settles it, then.* I make no attempt to hide my disdain, it is pointless. *That alien lady is not only a bad monarch, she is also a bitch.*

Anna chuckles softly in response.

Cas however, remains pretty calm and I feel him focused on much more than anger. *While Dean may be right, I still do not understand how this relates to us providing you with assistance.*

*Cas has a point,* my thoughts come out unfiltered after all this two are technically in my head right now. *How the hell am I supposed to help you?*

*Well, we have found one last hope.* She speaks in a calm tone and the images of the pillars fade away, leaving me with the darkness behind my closed eyes.

I open my eyes, realizing she has let go of my hand.

She stares back and me confidently and continues the conversation without missing a beat. “We have found a way to cheat the code.” She opens her messenger bag from the first time in our conversation and pulls out a strange cube, it’s metallic silver and has a good amount of intricate symbols that cover it, almost entirely, they emit a dull red glow. “Using this,” she holds it out to me, giving me a closer look, “We can trick the system into admitting someone else.”

I feel Cas’ emotions stir up in the back of my head. A mixture of confusion, suspicion, but most of all, curiosity.

“The issue is not anyone can use it, it has to be someone with DNA different enough from her to fool the protocols.” She pauses for a second, staring at me squarely in the eyes. “In short, we need a human.”

Well fuck.

Before I have much time to process that, to figure out how to respond or what questions to ask, I’m startled by a loud, guttural snarl that almost makes me jump out of my skin.

*Shadow Hounds!* Both Cas and I think, in unison.

Anna’s eyes fill with a combination of surprise and recognition as she quickly hides the cube back in her messenger bag. “You need a weapon, now!” She warns.

Argh! It’s not like I don’t know that already. “And you need to hide!” I yell back at her as I forcibly close my eyes, all the nerves on my body standing at attention as I try to block out the desperate sounds of the hounds coming towards us. 

The first person to come to mind is Cas, unsurprisingly since I feel his presence, and his own worry and distress, in the back of my mind. I’m not sure if this is really the right choice, but I have no time. I lash on to those thoughts and do my best to form something out of them, Blue Eyes.

Heavy like a fully automatic machine gun, Blue Eyes feels solid in my hands. But it is no regular gun.

*It should be one shot.* I turn on the Freeze-ray and press my feet squarely into the ground as I keep the gun aimed at the other end of the alleyway, just waiting for those disgusting beasts to show their ugly ass faces.

I feel Cas’ trembling nerves on the other end of our link. *It’s okay,* he says.

What is? Is it okay if I miss? If I have to use your weapon more than I intended? It’s okay if I get hurt? 

I don’t get to ask any of that because there is another low howl and I pull the trigger.

It happens in the blink of an eye. The hounds are there, amorphous smoky creatures that seem straight out of nightmares with gnarring teeth and big claws, jumping at me and ready to maul my face. Then they are all frozen solid into what looks like a complex statue created to scare children away.

I let out a sigh of relief. *I hate those things.*

*It would be weirder if you didn’t.* Cas’ voice is shaky but still sounds less tense than before. *Everyone sees something different in them.* Well, he is not wrong, they are the stuff of nightmares, literally.

I tighten my grip around Blue Eyes firmly. Then turn around slowly, giving a look at the whole perimeter to make sure there aren’t more of those monsters around. I vaguely wonder where Anna hid herself because I do not see her.

*Dean, it’s not over yet.* Cas’ warning comes to the back of my mind and I see a flash of another pack of hounds silently stalking towards the window on my right.

I swiftly turn just in time to catch them preparing for their jump. They are frozen solid before they can get their ghostly paws out of the marble floor inside the building.

I feel Cas take in a shaky breath and it stings me with worry. *Do you want to tell Sam? Gabriel could come help us.*

*No, I’m fine. We can’t risk them finding out about Anna.* 

There is an odd pause as Cas seemingly thinks something over, finally, he says, *I believe Sam might already be suspicious.*

I take another look around and, looking for Anna. I see her hiding under a pile of rubble. I sigh, “We should get out of here before more show up.”

Anna steps out of the rubble moving with such careful precision that not a single sound is heard from her. “I can’t go back with you,” she whispers once she is closer to me, “It’s too risky.”

I tighten my grip on Blue Eyes, trying to keep my senses sharp and my attention on any potential dangers. “Those stupid dogs aren’t usually smart enough to do stuff like this.” Jumping on people, yes, but waiting around and trying to catch them by surprise? That is completely out of line, and I don’t like it.

“It will only get worse from now on…” She doesn’t have to say much more for me to understand, but she goes on regardless. “If we don’t reunite the dimensions they will only get smarter, bigger, and more dangerous.”

*Well then, I advise we leave, and soon.* Cas’ voice is low and strained.

I frown and look down at Blue Eyes, it’s still solid in my hands, but I worry regardless. *I’m sorry, Cas. I’ll wrap this up fast, I promise.*

I begin walking out of the alley and do my best to keep my voice as low as I can. “We can separate later, for now, we should get moving. Staying here does no one any good.”

Anna walks quietly next to me, keeping her voice low as well. “I only need to know that you will help us, Dean Winchester.”

I keep my eyes peeled for any trouble, I fucking hate this. I want to help, but I don’t feel like I can make a choice like this. “I need more time to think.”

After a short pause, Anna speaks again. “I understand. Speak to your superiors, think about it, and I will visit you to speak to you tonight.”

“So it was you.” I do my best not to yell out in surprise, but I do take a moment to look at her with a slight frown. “You _have_ been messing with my dreams.”

“In a way. I can’t actually do all that much, I can’t make you see stuff. All I can do is talk, the good thing is now that you actually know it’ll be me it should be easier to communicate with you. I do apologize for not letting you sleep, I am aware humans require such rest.” She keeps looking around as she speaks, fast and almost without a beat. “We really need to separate now,” she concludes, a nervous edge in her tone, and turns to leave.

“No, wait.” I grab her arm, forgetting for a moment that will make her able to read my thoughts. “What do you mean? I— in the dream I—” *I saw you.*

She gives me a firm nod. “Dean—” She takes my hand and pulls it away from her arm before letting it go. “—We’ve met before.”

“What? But when?” I’m confused, were those all… memories?

She shakes her head, looking alarmed. “Dean, I need to go.”

Before I can try to stop her again she leaps up into the air and a pair of wings spread out from her back.

I stare at the display in awe. *No way. Those are—*

*—Wings.* Cas completes my sentence for me.

I really want to stay and ponder on the meaning of all this, but we are running out of time. The faint growling in the distance grows lauder as the Shadow Hounds get closer.

I shake my head and take a deep breath. I will have to leave all of this for later. *Alright,* I crack my knuckles, *time to pick up the pace.*

*What do you mean?* Cas questions in a low tone with an edge of confusion.

I take a deep breath and relax my muscles, slowly I let Blue Eyes vanish from my hands.

Apparently, that’s what catches Cas onto my plan. *Dean, wait! You are supposed to be taking it easy.* He warns me, but to be honest it is very hard to listen to him when he sounds so tired.

*Shh, you are tired and we are a team. Let me get us out of here.*

I get nothing else but a small sigh of resignation in reply so I activate my communicator and begin running back to the point where Gabriel and I had separated a while back.

Sure enough the moment my feet start pounding against the concrete I hear the growls and howls of the hounds intensify. They are trying to catch up to me, but they can’t possibly get to me as long as I keep up my pace. *Gabe, we need to head back. Now.*

*Woah! What’s the hurry? I haven’t found anything yet.*

*Shadow Hounds,* I reply. *So hurry the hell up.*

*Yikes, I hate those things!* Gabe has never told me what he sees Shadow Hounds as, but by the sound of his voice in my mind, they must look disgusting.

*Yeah, everyone hates those things.* I scrunch up my eyebrows as the sound of their howling keeps coming from behind me. *And they are after me so get ready to leave.*

*Roger that, Dean-o!*

We don’t talk much after that. Thankfully, when I reach the meeting point Gabriel is waiting there with Baby. 

Baby tries to greet me, excitedly expecting me to give her something to put inside her security compartment.

I shake my head and pet her behind the ear. “Sorry, Baby, nothing this time and we need to go home.” 

She whines, clearly upset, but obediently moves to sit in between Gabriel and I. She knows what ‘go home’ means, and shortly after she fades away, leaving me alone with Gabriel.

We can't take anything back from the 5th Dimension into the real world, but Baby can. For the most part, Charlie says it’s not really the actual object, but a recreation of it. Whatever, it works so I try not to question it too much, in case I break it.

I put my hand on Gabriel’s shoulder, we don’t have time to talk right now. “I’ll see you in a bit.”

He gives me a small nod, closes his eyes and slowly fades away from the 5th Dimension.

Once I’m the only one left I close my eyes as well. *You waiting for me, Cas?*

*Yes, very impatiently, if I may add.*

I laugh at his gruff response.

Cas laughs as well, in the back of my mind it's quite a delightful sound and a very peaceful emotion fills me up.

I focus on him completely, his messy hair, his bright blue eyes, the lopsided smile he gives me sometimes. Then the memory of our first time peeks in between just a little and a smile grows on my face.

Soon I’m back at the ANIMA’s Fighter Station and Cas is looking at me with a smile from the other side of the glass.

I disconnect myself from the ANIMA and he walks over to open the glass door for me. As soon as he opens the door I lean forwards and plant a small kiss on his lips. “All’s good?” I ask as I pull away.

He nods. “Yes, I’m…” He pauses to stretch his shoulders. “I’m good.”

I take a moment to look at him. His eyes look tired and he seems tense. I place a hand on his shoulder, trying to keep him looking at me. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah.” He nods, “Yeah, I am good. Are you okay?” His voice has the faintest hint of worry in it as if he is trying not to show it much.

“Well…” I spring up from the chair, right out of the station, pretty satisfied to note that my entire body is not in pain. No Physical Backlash this time, I give Cas a winning smile.

He just rolls his eyes and pulls me towards the rest of the team.

Like any other time, Sam and Gabriel are deeply entangled in their little affection session. Not a required part of being a Fighter, but apparently something we all do anyways.

Charlie is sitting down on a bench looking over a stat monitor, notepad in hand, while Baby tries to get someone to pet her for longer than 5 seconds.

I take Cas’ hand and go over to the bench to sit besides Charlie. “What are you looking over, Charls?”

Cas sits down next to me silently, keeping his hand in mine.

“I heard about the Shadow Hounds,” she explains, “I jumped in to see if I could get any info on them while you guys were still in, but I didn’t get much.” She bites her lip as she scribbles something down on her notepad.

I give her a small nod, sometimes I forget that while they know almost everything happening to us, we don’t really get to see what they are up to. It’s not uncommon for the Anchors to talk with each other, they have their own communication system and Charlie is often on it as well.

“They were acting different, to say the least,” Cas tells her but doesn’t say more. Instead, he settles for giving me a meaningful look.

I look up at the clock on the wall, it marks 3:45 pm. We still have some time scheduled that was supposed to be for the mission, so I’m actually in no hurry.

I turn back to Charlie. “It’s like they are getting smarter,” I tell her.

“You think so?” She taps her pen on the notepad, looking over her notes.

“Some of them tried to ambush me!” I chuckle, “Unsuccessfully, of course, but they tried.”

Charlie rolls her eyes but makes no comment on my remark. “It’s so spotty, though. They are smart enough to try an ambush you, but not smart enough to realize they wouldn’t be able to catch you?”

“Maybe they are just stubborn.” I shrug. I know that’s not it, but I can’t really tell Charlie what’s happening, not yet. I need to talk to Bobby first.

“It’s just an odd change of their behavioral pattern.” She sighs and closes her notepad. “Anyways, I’ll get going.” Before she gets up she gives me a soft push with her elbow and a raised eyebrow. “I should probably leave you alone,” she chuckles.

I dart my eyes towards Cas, and notice that he has zoned out, looking at Gabe and Sam who are still cuddling at their station.

I… Does he want to be like that as well?

I’m not really all that used to that, I mean Sam and I would just sit and talk. That’s different, but then, Cas probably was like that with his previous Fighter.

I feel a small spark of jealousy rise up in my chest, but I recognize it so it gets pushed away. There is no point being jealous of someone who is gone. Instead, I decide to scoot in closer to Cas, I let go of his hand and place my arm around his shoulder instead.

Cas turns to look at me, startled.

I don’t make a big deal out of it, though. I just pull him in closer and give him a smile. “How are you feeling, Cas?”

I did use his weapon today, after all, it’s not terribly uncommon for Anchors to become tired when their Fighters use the weapons tied to them. It’s not something to be expected in a strong and stable partnership… but like I said, not terribly uncommon. ‘Specially in new teams, and he did look tired earlier.

Cas’ eyes soften and he answers in his sweet, gravelly tone. “I am feeling alright, Dean.”

“Something else on your mind, then?” I wonder out loud.

He stops for a moment, looking off to the side and taking in a deep breath. “No,” he concludes. He smiles and then moves to place his head on my shoulder. “No, I am quite alright, Dean.”

I steal a glance up at the clock once more. We still have some time, right?

We can stay like this, just a little bit longer…


	9. Don't Ever Let Go

“For the love of everything, Bobby, this is serious!” Unable to contain myself any longer I get up from the chair and slam my hands on the table. “Are you really okay with just doing nothing?!” I can’t believe this crap.

Cas places his hand on my arm, silently trying to calm me down, but I'm so over the edge I can’t get myself to listen to him anymore. I ‘calmed down and gave Bobby some time to think’ far too many times, I’ve even met up with Anna twice already, I’m done trying to be diplomatic and nice.

“Dean, for the third time, we are not getting involved in this alien mumbo-jumbo.” He crosses his arms and pins me with one nasty glare.

I throw my hands up in the air. “So that’s it? You won’t even take this to the H.C.A? You can’t make the choice for everyone!”

“I can, and I already did. We’ve had this conversation enough over the past three days, you are not changing my mind. Forget about it.” As if to make his point even clearer he turns to look over some report or another, indicating that he considers the conversation over.

“What was the point of letting me go on the mission then? What was the point in trying to find out what was going on?” I tighten my hands into fists, I wish I could punch something.

Bobby throws the papers he was looking over back to his desk and turns to me, fuming. “I never should have let you go on that mission in the first place. Stupid boy, meeting with a dumb alien,” he mumbles.

It makes my blood boil. “Her name is Anna and—”

“I don’t care if her name is Madona or Margarita, those things are our enemies and I’m not gonna listen to a single fucking thing they say, so I suggest you keep your damn ideas to yourself!” He slams his fist on the table.

I stare at him, doing my best to contain myself, but I wish I could punch _him _now.

“Dean…” Cas tries to get my attention once again. I wish I had his calm demeanor, but I don’t.

Bobby and I just glare at one another. Stubborn old man, this is far too elaborate to be a trap.

Finally, Bobby looks away, mumbling under his breath, “Alien civilians my balls.”

And I know what I saw.

I stand my ground longer, just a little longer, but Bobby doesn’t look at me again. “Fine,” I say in the end, then head for the door.

Never before have I left Bobby’s office angry, but this time I do. I leave and I make a point of waiting for Cas to follow me just so I can slam the door closed behind him. 

Cas’ startled reaction would be funny if I wasn’t so frustrated at the moment.

I’m about to stomp my way towards my room when a familiar voice stops me.

“So… you ready to tell me what’s going on now?” Sam stands on the opposite wall, resting his back on it, with his arms crossed over his chest. His expression is full of smug expectancy.

I groan and roll my eyes. “Don’t you ever give up?”

He shrugs. “I guess I don’t, but neither do you.”

I sigh, Cas saying that Sam seemed suspicious of us during our last mission was the understatement of the year. Not only is Sam suspicious, no, he is suspicious enough to confront me about it, follow me around, and insist that I let him in on my plan immediately.

I shake my head, giving him a smirk. “Bitch.”

“Jerk,” Sam replies, quirking an eyebrow up. It gives it a playful tone, despite it being clear he does sort of mean it this time. He really dislikes me keeping important stuff from him.

I look out the window at the late afternoon sky. The sun is setting in the distance, shading the world in tones of pink and magenta. I had hoped Bobby would agree to help Anna, I really did, but now it’s clear that is not happening and yet we must go on. I have already made up my mind.

I turn back to Sam with a smirk. “Where’s your boyfriend?” If I'm gonna tell one of them I might as well tell them both. If we have any hope of pulling this off right under everyone’s noses we are gonna need some help.

Sam arcs up an eyebrow. “In our room?”

“Well,” I shrug, “go get him. We have stuff to talk about, so come to my room when you are ready.”

Sam’s expression immediately sobers up. He stares at me for a short beat, his eyes are smart and keep a steady gaze. “Alright, Dean.” He nods, “I will see you then.” Then he heads down the hall towards his room.

Cas, who had stayed silent the whole time, pulls at my arm to catch my attention. “Dean, are you sure about this?”

I nod and start walking in the opposite direction as Sam, towards our room. “I thought we had already made that choice.”

Cas walks beside me at an even pace. “I know, but Sam…” Cas doesn’t finish his sentence.

“Yes, I would hate to get him in trouble, but if someone has to help us then it should be Sam. We can trust him.” I reassure Cas further by taking his hand in mine and caressing it with my thumb.

Physical comfort is easier, especially when we can’t speak too much. From this point on we are breaking the rules, and we are keeping secrets. So I can’t give him words, not now.

Cas just tightens his hold on my hand. We did talk about this before, it has to be done one way or the other. We need to help Anna with or without Bobby. If that means we have to sneak out and use the ANIMA behind his back, then so be it.

We even talked to Anna about it, we will meet with her today, no matter what. I know a part of us still would have prefered for Bobby to simply help us, but it’s too late for that now. What Anna told me, in my dream, is too much to ignore.

We get to our room soon after that. Once we are inside, in the comfort and the calm of the familiar space, I finally feel all the tension leaving my body.

I let myself fall down on the bed with a soft plop. “You think this is really the right choice?” I wonder out loud.

“Dean,” Cas sits on the edge of my bed and places a hand on my shoulder, “you know I agree with you.”

I nod, keeping my eyes on the ceiling. “Yeah, I know.” I turn towards him and pull at the sleeve of his jacket, urging him to come in closer. 

With a small smile, he leans down to place a short kiss on my lips.

When he leans back I stare into his deep blue eyes… Maybe…

Maybe this is just me being dumb, but I wonder if I would still have the guts to pull this off if Cas wasn’t around. I smile. I have no clue, but Cas does make this a little easier.

He returns my smile and caresses my cheek.

I sit up so I can lean in and kiss him properly this time. His lips are soft and tender, and we kiss slowly.

I’m about to deepen the kiss when I hear a knock on the door.

I groan and break the kiss to get up and open the door. “That better not be Sam and Gabriel,” I joke, because who else would it be? Still, I wanna keep snuggling Cas instead of dealing with this right now.

Cas chuckles, I get the feeling he gets just what I mean and it makes me smile.

I open the door and sure enough, my little brother and his boyfriend are standing on the other side.

“What? I thought you wanted to see us, Dean-o.” Gabriel says in a mocking tone. He probably heard me from the other side of the door.

Sam just shrugs innocently.

I roll my eyes. “Yeah, yeah, get in already.”

I close the door behind them and then sit down next to Cas. Gabriel and Sam sit on Cas’ bed, opposite to us.

“So…” Sam starts, nervously cracking his knuckles.

I hold up a hand. “I’ll talk,” I tell him.

This seems to calm him down, but only a little.

“First of all, you can’t mention what I’m about to tell you to anyone else. Not to the rest of the team, not to Charlie or Ash, and not to Bobby.” I can’t help the frown that forms in my face as I purse my lips. “Especially not Bobby.”

After both of them nod firmly, I continue. “Firstly, whether you decide to help or not is up to you.” I never had any intention of forcing this on them, we will be breaking so many rules and regulations I’d probably be angry if they felt obligated to help me. “I want to be clear that you have no obligation to help me, not as your commander, and not as your brother.”

Sam looks at me with surprise, his jaw hanging open slightly, but then he frowns instead. “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t want to help you,” he pauses, then looks down at the floor for a moment, “but I also trust there is a reason why you are giving us that warning.”

“Yeah,” I nod, “of course there is.”

“Tell me then, I promise I’ll tell you if it’s a stupid idea.” He gives me a smile and I return it.

I just tell them everything after that, from how Anna first contacted me, to her plan, to why it matters in the first place. I do skip the part where I figured out that I had met Anna before, years ago before the H.C.A. was established, back then Sam was so afraid of sleeping, I don’t want to bring him bad memories.

By the time I’m done the sun has long set down and the moon is high up in the sky.

At the end of my whole discourse, Sam stays silent as if processing all the information. He places a hand on his chin and finally goes, “So let me see if I got this. If we do this we will reverse what the aliens did when they separated the dimensions, right? Stop the Earth from dying, all that?”

“Yes.” I answer without hesitation.

Sam nods slowly but then purses his lips. “What about—” he cracks his knuckles nervously again, “—what about the adults? Will they…”

I know what he’s asking so I lower my eyes and shake my head. “No, Sam. It’s too late for that.”

I did ask Anna about it when I had the chance, but she told me it’s been too long to be able to fix that. The initial Blackout was an unintended side effect of dividing the world into two, had they reversed the process back then the adults could have been saved...

But now? They are long gone, the 5th Dimension took them and we can’t get them back. Anna told me the Queen didn’t care about the consequences creating the 5th Dimension would have on us. She is not sure how we have managed to become more resistant to this side effect, although Anna thinks it might be related to the anti-dreaming pills we take. The reality is the bureaucratic aliens don’t care enough to find out. The conversation made my blood boil, and even now the memory of it makes me frown.

Sam doesn’t comment on my reaction, instead, he moves on to his next question. “How are you sure she is telling the truth?”

“We see no reason for her to lie about this,” Cas answers before I do.

I just nod in agreement.

“What do you need us to help you with?” Gabe suddenly asks, it’s the first time he’s spoken since he walked into the room and I doubt I have ever heard him ask a question in such a serious tone.

“Not—” I sigh, “—well, not much. This is very risky, we can’t get caught. Someone needs to stay and keep watch.”

Gabriel is about to respond, but Sam cuts him off. “Dean, no! Come on, you shouldn’t go alone.”

I try to chuckle, to lighten up the tension. “_That’s_ your problem with my plan?”

“Yes, because that is the stupid part!” Sam complains, throwing his hands up. “Honestly, what if something goes wrong?”

“If you decide to help us, and _if_ something does go wrong, then Gabriel could go in to help me.” I explain, putting emphasis on the hypothetical nature of the statement.

Sam sighs with frustration, and his shoulders slum forward a little. “You are pretty set on this, aren’t you?”

For the first time in the conversation I feel a knot form in my throat, but I push it down and give him a firm nod. “We have to do something.”

“Alright, then. When?” Sam asks, crossing his arms with determination.

I try to caution him once more. “Sam—”

“No. You already gave me your warning, I’m helping you.” He then points a finger at me, “and I'm not letting you feel guilty about it. So let’s just move on.”

Not sure of what more to say, or what to argue, I turn to look at Cas. Searching for his opinion.

To my surprise, Cas is already looking at me and is not surprised when I turn to him. “Tonight?” He whispers.

Yes, that is what we agreed. If anything he is just re-affirming it once again.

“Yeah,” I say, keeping my eyes on him for a moment before I turn back to Sam. “Tonight.”

Gabriel jumps up from the bed then, in one swift motion he pulls out his old wrist watch, he told me once it was his father’s but it never fit him quiet well so he keeps it in his pocket instead. He refuses to fix it so that it fits him, it’s such a small thing, but it’s a reminder of what we lost. As well as a reminder of why we have to put a stop to this. “Well, there is no time like the now!” He smiles, placing his free hand on his hip.

My eyes dart to Sam and for just a second I see him giving Gabriel a tender, affectionate look, right before he gets up as well and points to the door. “He is right, it is already past curfew.”

I stand up and place a hand on Sam’s shoulder. “Are you sure about this?”

He rolls his eyes but gives me a smile. “Yes, you are risking your ass for this. The least I can do is break a couple of rules so I can make sure you don’t screw up. You are my brother, after all.”

It makes me laugh, little pest. I quickly reach out to ruffle Sam’s hair, messing up his long brown locks.

“Hey!” He complains, trying to get away from me. “Dean, stop!”

“What? We need people to believe you were sleeping in case they see you out in the hall and you need to lie. Maybe say you are sleep-walking again.” I tease him as I pull him in for a side hug so he can’t get away.

“Shut up, I haven’t done that in years!” Well, he is not lying, but twelve year old-Sammy? Serial sleep-walker… Gave me a couple of frights back then.

Cas, and even Gabriel, laugh as well at the exchange. Eventually, Cas places a hand on my shoulder and I reluctantly let go of Sam, who tries to fix his hair while giving me a comically deep frown.

“Alright, alright.” I say, “We should keep quiet now, for real.”

Sam gives me one of his bitch-faces, the one that says ‘look who’s talking.’

I shrug. Couldn’t pass up the chance to tease my little brother a little, could I? Especially not when he was going all chick-flick on me.

After that, we finally leave towards the ANIMA’s room. The hallways are dark, empty, and quiet. We do our best to move silently, at a steady pace, and thankfully make it to the ANIMA without incident.

I take a look around to make sure the coast is clear and slowly crack the door open to peek inside. As expected, it’s completely empty with the exception of Baby sleeping in her corner.

I walk inside and she inevitably wakes up.

Baby spring up and an instinctive growl rapidly raises in her throat.

“Shh,” I walk towards her slowly, “Baby, it’s me, Dean. Calm down, cutie.”

Once I’m close enough for her to see my face properly and hear my voice, she relaxes immediately and starts whining for my attention. I almost feel like I’m taking advantage of her trust, but I have no choice.

I place a finger over my lips, signalling for her to remain quiet. She obeys and I finally reach out a hand to her, she licks my fingers happily.

I pet her behind her ear, just how she likes it, while I motion for everyone else to come in.

Gabriel is the last one in, he closes the door carefully behind himself and turns the light on.

Him turning the light on really lets in sink in that we are doing this. I stop playing with Baby and walk towards my usual Fighter Connector. Even with the edge of my nerves nagging in the back of my mind there is just no time to waste. The longer we are out of our rooms, the more likely we are to be found out.

Cas and I exchange a look and then he heads to his Anchor Station as well.

I turn to Gabriel and Sam before I go in, “one of you should keep an eye outside, the other one should stay here in case Cas needs help. Understood?”

Both of them nod, perfectly in sync, with a matching set of serious expressions on their faces.

“Alright, then.” I look at Cas one last time. “Let’s do this.”

With that I settle down in the Fighter Connector. I lay back, feeling the leather against my skin, soon the machine starts up and the connection begins. Slowly my eyes close and the all too familiar feeling of falling asleep while still being fully awake sinks in beneath my skin and into my bones.

*Dean.* Cas’ voice sounds in the back of my mind. *Open your eyes.*

I open my eyes and raise my head to look up at the skyline. I’m on top of a rooftop and the whole city expands before me. I turn around to take a good look at the whole landscape. 

The old style buildings in disarray, the big clock tower in the distance… This is London. I’m far away from home, tonight. Very far away.

Anna, however, should be pretty close by.

*Where to, Cas?* I ask him as I stretch myself getting ready to run.

*I think you know where to go.* He responds, and a quick flash of the clock tower appears before my eyes. Above it, a tall Dimensional Pillar extends all the way up towards the sky.

*Can I sprint there?* I ask with excitement.

*Yes, Dean, you can sprint there.* I can certainly hear the eye roll in Cas’ voice, but I also hear the small hint of affection in it.

With a smirk on my face I jump down from the rooftop and sprint through the streets of London. I idly wonder if they also have a version of the H.C.A. If maybe they discovered the same things we did and have their own version of the ANIMA, or are they simply living life avoiding the Aliens?

We say we are at war all the time… but these past few days I haven’t been able to shake the feeling that to really fight back we should be trying harder. Coming to check on other parts of the world, for example, we should have been able to find out about the Pillars ourselves, and yet it seemed like Bobby had no clue at all when I talked to him.

It rubs me the wrong way.

It doesn’t take me long to make it to the base of Big Ben and I find Anna quite easily. Well, more like, Anna finds me.

Once I approach the tower she comes out of her hiding spot. “I’m glad you made it, Dean Winchester.” She gives me a slight nod as a form of greeting. “Did your supervisors finally agree to help us?”

“Not really,” I cross my arms and roll my eyes. “You’ll have to make do with me.”

She frowns slightly, we had already discussed this possibility, but it seems she would also have preferred the alternative. “Are you certain you want to help me, considering the situation?” She takes out the cube from her messenger bag and holds on to it delicately. “Once we program this to work with you, there is no going back.”

We talked about that too, the cube will work for one person, and one person only. If I decide to stop helping them they will need to make a new one and find someone else. Well unless I… died.

“I know, you don’t need to remind me. I already agreed to this.” It’s not like I can really ask anyone else at this point. There is no guarantee people from other Squadrons won’t just kill Anna on sight, as it is, the only reason she approached me is because we sort of met before. A shudder runs up my spine at the thought.

*Sorry about that,* Cas suddenly apologizes.

I shake my head even though he can’t see me. *Not your fault Cas, you were just answering my questions.* Very specifically, but regardless I'm the one who asked him about how others had treated Civilian Aliens before.

If Anna noticed my exchange with Cas, she doesn’t make any comment on it. Instead, she gives me a solemn nod and places a hand over the cube. “In that case, let’s begin.”

She closes her eyes and the cube begins to shine more brightly. Slowly the cube opens up, revealing a red orb resting inside of it.

All she told me before was I would have to touch it. Honestly, what is up with these aliens and touching?

Regardless, I reach out towards the red orb and it seems as if it reaches towards me as well, slowly inching closer to my hand as if compelled by a magnet. Eventually it actually makes contact with my skin, it’s hot, scorching hot. If this wasn’t the 5th Dimension I’d be afraid it would burn me. Even knowing it can’t actually hurt me I have to fight back the instinct to pull my hand away from the heat.

Slowly the orb changes color. First orange, then yellow, until it reaches a deep sea green and finally cools down completely.

I pull my hand away and feel a little ditzy. Anna had warned me about this too, apparently now the orb has a sample of my DNA on it or some crap like that, and having a part of me permanently in the 5th Dimension will make my brain a little confused until I get used to it. Whatever, I don’t complain.

After that the cube closes around the now green orb. Changing to a green light as well.

“It is done.” Anna says, “We should begin, we have no time to waste. Crowley’Alashton and his team will be keeping watch while we get up there.”

“Sorry, who?” I arch an eyebrow in confusion.

Anna chuckles, “you wouldn’t think a rebellion is a one-woman deal, right? I have people under my command, Crowley’Alashton is one of them. Maybe you can meet the rest of the rebellion later, but right now they can’t leave their positions and we—” She looks up at the pillar, pointing at it “—must go up there.”

With those words she turns around and starts heading towards the top of the tower. I follow her close behind.

“Once we are at the pillar, I will use the cube to hack the system and let you in.” She explains, “When you are inside you need to find the main console and overload it with mental energy. It’s the only way we know of, you can’t use weapons on it, and if we turn it off they can just turn it back on. You need to charge it with a constant flow of energy until you basically render it unusable, if you stop the pillar might recognize you as an intruder and—” She makes an awkward pause and clears her throat, “—well let’s just say it will not be a pleasant event.”

I don’t tell her, but boy do I wish there was another way. I’m really not the best at projecting mental energy. If this is gonna become a regular thing I might have to get Alicia to train me, she is much better at that than anyone else on the team.

*I’m sure you’ll do fine, Dean.* Cas reassures me, he probably felt my worry through our mental connection.

I nod to myself, yes, I can do this.

Soon after that we make it to the pillar. A small console sits on the outer wall and as Anna said she hacks it. After a few well placed keyboard strokes the doors open for me to go inside.

Once I walk in the doors automatically close behind me. The interior is simple, if a bit eerie. The console placed in the middle of the room radiates blue light, and that is all that illuminates the room. I walk towards it and take in a deep breath. My head still feels a little fuzzy but I do my best to focus as I place my hand over the console.

Using mental energy is like trying to kill something with your eyes, except it might actually work. Just like I can will my weapons into existence by focusing enough, I should be able to will other things in the 5th Dimension into existence. In this case I need enough energy to make this thing fry itself from the inside.

I place a hand on top of the console and focus my mind on doing just that, charging it with energy. To my surprise the lights on the console begin to flicker slowly and I perk up with excitement, this might not be so hard after all.

I’m preparing myself to amp up the charge when I notice a shadow moving at the corner of my eye. I try to focus further, and to not avert my eyes, but my head starts hurting faintly. “Fuck.”

I grit my teeth and keep pushing energy into the console.

Another shadow moves around the corner of my eye.

I refuse to turn away from the console, even as a chill runs down my body.

*Dean?* Cas’ gravelly voice comes at me with worry.

I don’t reply to him, because another familiar voice speaks to me in that moment. “What are you doing, helping these dumb aliens?”

I swallow the lump that instantly forms on my throat.

It sounds just like Jesse.

“Shut up, you’re dead,” I reply, gitting my teeth.

“Me? Who ever said I died?” Jesse laughs, and I wish I could say it was the fun youthful laugh I remembered, but it’s not. “I’ve been here the whole time, Dean. You are just completely delusional, thinking you are actually the leader of the team now.”

I furrow my brows and keep focusing on charging the console, bringing the power further and further up. My head begins to hurt from the effort.

*Dean, what’s going on?* Cas tries to get me to communicate with him, but I don’t have the mental power to reply.

“Dean, how dare you ignore your leader.” Jesse’s voice lashes out in anger at me when I refuse to reply. “And to think you were once my star Fighter, now look at you, you are pitiful.”

“Shut up!” I yell at him as I keep trying to concentrate on the console.

The lights start to flicker faster, I have it, I know I’m close.

“No, you shut up, Dean! You are supposed to listen to me!” Jesse grows angrier and with his growing rage I feel a force pushing back at me, trying to pry me away from the console.

A shadow extends on the floor, as if he was actually there, standing right behind me. But he is not, he is not real.

_Jesse is dead._

He died right here, in the 5th Dimension. So it knows… We have talked before about how the 5th Dimension could play tricks with your brain, but this is not what I expected.

I continue to push energy into the console and a siren starts wailing. The noise rings in my ears, and I wish I could tell it to shut up as well.

That’s when the door opens, I can’t turn to look, but the light coming from outside tells me what I need to know.

Anna’s voice comes at me in a hurry, yelling over the siren. “Dean, I’m so sorry! We didn’t know it could use illusions to defend itself, I swear! Don’t listen to it, it’s just the security system. Keep going, Dean! You can’t stop now.”

I feel a shift in the force pushing against me as a second shadow moves on the other side of the room. 

A female voice begins to speak as well. “Annael’stierck,” the voice lets out a chuckle, “Could you be even more of a failure? Honestly ‘Rebel Leader’? What a joke!”

“Shut up, you are not real!” Anna yells at the female voice.

It’s just too much.

Jesse begins speaking again, mocking my leadership, the siren continues to make noise, and Anna and whoever she is talking to continue to fight in the background of that.

I yell in frustration. “I can’t focus like this!!” My heart hammers in my chest, my vision becomes blurry, and I can feel my grip on the energy charging the console begin to slip.

I’m not a bad leader, I’m not! I tried to save Jesse, I never wanted him to die!! I do what I think is best, I—

*Dean!*

“Dean!”

Two voices call out for my name.

I closed my eyes, I don’t know when but I closed my eyes for an instant, and when I open them it’s too late.

I yell in pain as the charge I had been sending to the console bounces back at me. One moment, it was one single moment and now the 5th Dimension uses it against me.

“Dean, you can endure it!” Comes Anna’s voice, managing to climb it’s way on top of the horrible laughter of the other voices, mocking my pain. “Just focus on Castiel, Dean, please!” She sounds so desperate… so human, so sad.

I want to listen to her, but I can’t, it’s like every nerve in my body is on fire. I can’t think of anything else, and I can’t hear Cas’ voice.

My body begins to shake from the pain, my throat burns from the strain being put on my voice. This isn’t real.

Except that my brain thinks that it is.

My knees bend and I collapse onto the floor. I pull at my hair trying to do something, anything, to make the pain stop.

I’m dying, aren’t I?

Cas has probably disconnected already. That’s good.

That’s okay, I couldn’t justify making him endure this unbearable torture with me. He can be okay, stay safe.

Something pushes at the back of my consciousness, though. Faintly, behind the pain, I begin to notice.

I notice other things, the wetness on my cheeks, the trembling of my hands, the beating of my heart, my jagged breathing, and a slight warmth inside of me, deep inside…

Cas… no.

He’s there, Cas is still there on the other side, I feel him trying to reach out to me. Trying to comfort me despite the amount of pain I must be putting him through, despite the fact that if I die with him still there, he’ll die too.

I cry harder, I yell harder.

I pound my fist on the floor, I feel like I’m losing my mind. I can’t— I can’t let him die with me, not for something this stupid, not for anything.

So I push him away.

He pulls me in harder.

I have no strength, the world is caving in around me. Everything is dark, every muscle in my body aches, and I can barely move. I focus all of the strength that I have left in trying to send him away.

*No, Cas, you have to leave me. I can’t—* Even finishing my sentence proves to be far too difficult.

*I—* Cas’ gravelly voice shakes from the strain he’s putting on himself to stay connected with me, *—am not leaving you.*

After he says this an intense flood of his emotions come rushing in towards me. It would be so easy to give in to his warmth and his affection. I want to be with Cas, but I keep myself from reaching back for him. I keep trying to push him away, trying my best to focus on the pain instead.

*Let me go, please… I can’t endure this much longer.* I plead with him.

*Not—* His voice breaks, as he groans in pain, *—ever.*

I shiver, as once again he pushes all of his emotions towards me and this time I can’t hold back. I cling to them.

I cling to the affection and ignore the pain. I focus on him instead, his blue eyes, his soft lips, how his hand feels when I hold it, and what it is like when I tangle my fingers in his hair while we kiss.

I don’t know for how long we remain connected like that, so deeply my mind is simply filled Cas and nothing else, but eventually I don’t feel any pain.

For a moment I think I actually died, I can’t comprehend how anything else could be possible. The pain was never ending.

But then I hear Anna’s voice. “Dean?”

I open my eyes slowly. The first thing I see is my hand still touching the base of the console, but the room is darker. I look up to find out that the console somehow turned off.

I turn towards the door, to find Anna sitting on the floor. Her hair is a mess and her cheeks are wet. She stares at me with a strange mixture of confusion and excitement. “You— you did it.” She says in a soft and tender tone.

I find it hard to find my voice, or feel my body, this doesn’t seem real. All I can manage is to slowly get up from the floor and crawl towards her. “Ha—How?” I manage to croak out.

She shakes her head. “The charge bounced back again, I don’t know how.”

I furrow my brows and instead turn back inwards, towards myself. I poke around my mind for Cas. I sigh in relief when I have no trouble finding him.

Tired. *Come back.*

I shudder. Yes, that’s good, I want to be with Cas.

I’m about to tell Anna as such, but I only get to see her tilt her head in confusion and then I’m suddenly startled awake, back in the Fighter Connector.

My entire body hurts, there is a ringing in my ears, and my eyes complain at the brightness in the room. I try to pull the door open but my hands shake stupidly and fail to obey me. I haven’t had such a rough return since the first time I ever used the ANIMA.

Sam rushes in to open the door for me, his lips are moving but I can’t hear a single word he says.

I shake my head and grab his shoulder. “Ca—as,” is all I manage to say.

Sam nods frantically, then pulls me up and helps me walk. 

Cas is barely able to stand, he uses the edge on the Anchor Station to keep himself from collapsing onto the floor. When he sees me a soft smile forms on his lips.

The moment I reach him I just throw myself into his arms and we both slowly end up kneeling on the floor, our legs too weak to support us.

I hold him as tight as my aching arms will allow me, and I breath in his familiar scent.

I feel like I’m home.

I bury my face in the crook of his neck and whisper his name over and over.

Fuck. “I love you,” I mumble without thinking, and it feels so right. “God, I love you.”

It feels so true, so perfect. I don’t want anyone else.

“Me too.”


	10. Tell Me More

“So, how do you explain this?” Charlie asks, seconds after storming into my room unannounced. She lets a manila folder fall unceremoniously onto my lap.

I furrow my brows, closing the book I had been reading, and sit up on the bed to take a look at it. The moment I open it my heart jumps up on my chest and I thank the heavens Cas is not here right now. Which, taking into account what the papers say, should not make me happy at all. I keep my expression calm and shrug. “It's a report?”

“Yes, Dean, a report.” Charlie crosses her arms over her chest. “A report of your stats during your last mission 3 days ago. Oh, and let’s not forget—” She lowers her voice to a whisper, and yet somehow sounds even more pissed off than she already did, “—a usage report from 2 weeks ago. That says you were using the ANIMA after curfew.”

Oh…

Okay, think Winchester. Damage control, now! “Well that was just—”

Before I can finish my honestly pretty lousy excuse, Charlie interrupts me. “Listen, I don’t wanna know, okay? I won’t even tell Bobby, but something is wrong with you and I’m not ignoring that.”

I roll my eyes and give her a non-commital shrug. “I already told you I’m fine, Charls.”

“Oh, don’t you ‘Charls’ me.” She points an accusatory finger at my chest, then scoffs. “You told me ‘Oh, everything is fine, Charls.’” She lowers her voice, trying to imitate my tone. “Then you started avoiding me!”

Now I’m the one who scoffs. “I’m not avoiding you, okay? I’m just… busy.” Argh, now is not the time to go giving her awkward pauses. I wish we weren’t having this conversation at all.

“Don’t even try that, Dean Winchester, locking yourself up in your room all day reading books—” she points at my momentarily forgotten copy of The Hunger Games “—is hardly an acceptable definition of ‘busy.’”

“Oh, come on Charlie! What’s so weird about that?” I try my best not to sound defensive as I shuffle around for the book.

“I don’t know, maybe that you haven’t talked to anyone in more than a week? Not me, Sam, Lisa, or even Benny, who by the way left on a mission with Jo the other day and you didn’t even show up to see them off.” Charlie gives me this incredulous look that just screams ‘I won’t believe a word you say.’ “Not to mention you have been keeping some safe distance from Cas too, don’t think I haven’t noticed that.”

I try to find a reasonable argument, I really do, but I got nothing. She is right… Since what happened the other day with Cas, when he basically saved my life, I know something changed but I can’t deal with it. And I just can’t get myself to lie to everyone either. I look down at the report on my lap, and toy with the corner of the pages.

Charlie sighs, and sits down on the bed with her legs crossed so she can still look at me. “Listen, you can’t just stay here forever, ignoring the issue and avoiding everyone. You and I both know what those stats mean.”

Against my better judgement I give her a small nod, still unable to look at her however.

While her tone has softened there is still an edge of anger in her voice as she continues. “One way or another you are gonna have to make a choice, but you can’t stay in that limbo for all eternity, it’s not stable, Dean.”

I take in a deep breath but it comes out as a groan. I mean she is not wrong, especially if I expect to keep helping Anna I need to be in top condition, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it. I turn away from her, “I don’t know what to do,” I mumble, but it’s half a lie. I know what I have to do, I just don’t wanna do it.

“Well—”

Just as Charlie is about to answer the door opens up again and Cas walks in carrying a tray with dinner on it. He tilts his head a little at Charlie, but doesn’t say anything, instead he just places the tray on the desk.

Charlie gives him a look but then turns back to me. “You know exactly what your choices are.” She then leans in towards me and whispers quickly. “May I suggest you at least make the choice with the one person who will be most affected by it? Because, last time I checked you still had an Anchor.” She rolls her eyes and then gets up from the bed in one swift motion, heading straight for the door.

“Bye Cas!” She sings on her way out, as though a couple of minutes ago she wasn’t fuming from head to toes.

Once the door is closed behind her Cas turns towards me, his head tilted to the side slightly. “So… What was that about?” His voice is sligtly amused and it warms up my heart, it makes me want to reach out and kiss him so bad.

Which is also terrifying. I know why I feel this way, what those intense feelings mean.

I peel my eyes away and look at the stat page instead. If I just wasn’t a Fighter… would we have a normal relationship, then? Or would it feel equally intense as this? I have no idea, and I never will, but the thought is a pleasant distraction from the obvious issue: the considerate spike in my relationship stat in regards to him.

The stats are just on the edge of me becoming a closed Fighter, and they are not stable. Cas must have seen them too, during our last official mission. The moment I tell him what this is we’ll need to pick a side, because my stats can’t stay this way.

At my lack of response Cas just lets out a sigh and moves on to pick up the tray of food. “I got you a sandwich,” he says.

“Yeah, thanks.” I keep avoiding looking at him. We haven’t talked about any of this. Not how I almost died, or what I told him after I came back either. I find it hard to broach the subject, even though I know I should.

Cas clears his throat awkwardly. “Sure, uh, no problem. What are you looking at?”

I swallow the lump on my throat. “My stat report,” I mumble. I instantly feel the tension building in the air, like a thick fog that clings to my skin and suffocates me.

Cas leaves the tray of food forgotten and comes over to sit next to me.

I move a little, trying to keep a bit of distance. I still refuse to look at him, despite every bone in my body begging me to do otherwise.

“Dean…” Cas’ voice is low and in it I hear the tender edges of his concern.

I try to just focus on my breathing. It’s all fine.

Well, no, it’s not. Nothing about this is fine, but I don’t know how to deal with it.

Cas moves closer to me and places a hand on my shoulder. “Listen, we—”

Startled, I jump and brusquely pull away from him, as if his hand was on fire.

I didn’t really mean to do that. I really didn’t, but when I turn to look at Cas he seems so hurt.

His blue eyes shine with the pain of rejection, because he knows I have to pick and that felt like a choice. However there is no anger on his features, no resentment or indignation.

My heart crumbles inside my chest. I can't stand to see him like this, to hurt him. In one swift motion I pull him into my arms. “I'm sorry. Cas. I'm so sorry, I didn't—” my voice breaks against the crock of his neck, “—I didn't mean it like that.”

It takes him a moment to process it, but eventually I feel him loosen up and place his arms around me, returning the hug. A small sigh of relief escapes his lips. God, this guy is too good for a coward like me.

“It’s okay, Dean,” he whispers in my ear as his fingers run through my hair in a slow caress.

I tighten my grip around him. It’s not okay. I shake my head. “I’m scared, Cas.” I don’t know what to do about it.

“Do you…” He takes in a deep breath as if stealing himself for the question. “Do you wanna talk about it?”

It’s such a simple thing, it’s the obvious thing, right? Normal people talk about their problems.

I take a deep breath and slowly pull away from Cas so I can look at him. “I think we should.” I nod, trying to convince myself as well.

Cas nods, but doesn’t say anything. He just sits there, waiting for me to begin, yet I don’t feel so awkward.

“Jesse was the captain of the team before me.” I decide to start from there, to explain why I’m afraid. “He was a closed Fighter. Him and his Anchor, Cesar, were an amazing team, there is no denying that.” 

I look down at my lap, Jesse was also a great leader; kind, understanding, smart. Those are some big shoes to fill. “We don’t really know why it happened,” I continue, “but over time his stats became very unstable, he was very dependant on his connection to Cesar. He refused to step down until we found a new member...” I fall silent.

Cas places a hand on my shoulder after I fail to find the words to finish the story. I turn to look at him and he gives me a small smile. 

“Captains around here are pretty stubborn, are they not?” He says, clearly trying to lift my mood.

I return his smile for a moment. “Yeah, I guess.” I take a deep breath and continue, “One day… I suppose it was too much. His defences just broke, they both died.”

Cas pulls me into a sort of side hug as he tries his best to comfort me, without pulling me in too close.

When he lets me go my hand instinctively reaches out for his. And I let it, allowing myself more contact with him than I had in weeks.

“Is that what scares you?” He asks after a moment of silence.

“It’s part of it,” I admit.

The other part is the fact that I’m not sure how to deal with what I’m feeling now. I still care about Benny and Lisa, deep down I do, but the idea of kissing them… much less doing anything beyond that, makes my head hurt.

With Cas, on the other hand…

Well I don’t think I can get enough of Cas.

“I guess I’m just not sure how to be—” I find it hard to say it out loud, so I end up mumbling the rest of the sentence awkwardly “—well like that.” I point in the general direction of the stat sheet, now laying on the floor, in an exasperated manner.

“I— Well, yes, it is different. But we don’t have to do that, Dean!” Cas begins to get nervous and a pink flush climbs up his cheeks. “Of course I would like to,” he is now talking faster than I have ever heard him do before, “but it’s— it’s okay if— if…” His gravelly voice slowly dies out and he doesn’t finish the sentence.

It’s a curious reaction, not what I had expected, so I’m not sure what to tell him.

“Can—” I linger in the edge of the question that came to my mind, even after all this time I had never asked him, but I decide to push forward. “Can you tell me how it was? Before, you know, with uh… Balthazar.” This is the first time I actually feel that I need to ask, if we are somehow expecting to make this choice, then I need to know. “I didn’t really read the file about him,” I confess, “I wanted you to tell me.”

Cas smiles just a bit, with amusement. “Really?”

“Yeah, I swear.” I laugh a little, trying to hide my nerves.

“Alright,” Cas says, “Balth and I were sort of… already together before the first ANIMA was created.” He looks down at his hand and he plays with the hem of his jacked absentmindedly. “It’s why we were chosen, I guess. Back then, when it began, we didn’t know anything about open or closed Fighters. All we knew was we needed two people with a strong emotional connection.”

I nod, even though he is not looking at me. That’s understandable.

“I…” He pauses for a moment and lets out a deep breath, shaking his head. “Balthazar was still stable when it happened. It wasn’t… so inexplicable. He got attacked, and he was alone, simple as that. Just one moment of bad luck.” Cas takes in a big breath before he continues, “When his defences broke he told me to let go.” His voice cracks as he forces the last words out, “and I did.”

This time I’m the one to wrap an arm around him and try to comfort him. A part of me feels a little spark of jealousy, it’s familiar at this point and I expected it, but I know it’s irrational so I pay no mind to it.

Cas doesn’t push me away, but he doesn’t look at me either. We just stay like that for a moment, then he continues talking. “I—” his voice quivers “—I won’t lie to you, Dean, I loved him a lot. We had been together from the start of this nightmare, and becoming a team only made us closer…”

“So then… did his suit have wings?” I decide to tease Cas a little, hoping to improve his mood like he did for me.

Cas chuckles, “yeah.”

“Wait, really?!” I thought that was just a fake rumor.

Cas nods, “Yes, it’s not a lie, we are just not sure why it happens.” He smiles down at his lap and finally turns to look at me, from the corner of his eyes. “The truth is,” his tone is serious once again, “it can be intense. You— you might feel a bit possessive, and it’s never enough. It’s... insatiable.” He closes his eyes, seeming to take a moment to calm himself down. “That’s why I understand you not wanting it. No matter how I feel about it.”

My heart jumps up at his words because… well, I can’t help it, right? The way he phrased that clearly implies he wants that for us. To be closer to each other than we could ever be. And yet, despite how much it clearly hurts him, despite the trouble it will be to keep a distance between us, he leaves the choice up to me.

“Cas,” I call out his name in a soft tone. When he still doesn’t turn to fully look at me, I grab his chin and turn him my way.

He doesn’t fight it, he turns to me with flushed cheeks and shining blue eyes. The scant light of the moon reflects on the surface of his eyes.

“Is it really what you want?” I have to ask him, after losing his previous Fighter does he really want that with me? Because my heart sings at the idea, it’s more than not wanting him to be hurt. I feel that I have probably already made my choice. And maybe it’s dumb, maybe it’s stupid, but all I want is for him to want me back.

“I thought it would be easier, when I accepted to work with you. But the truth is...” His gravelly voice wavers, but he doesn’t look away as he places a hand on my chest. “It's not, I want more. I've always wanted more, Dean, I—”

Cas doesn't finish his sentence because I pull him into a kiss. He is surprised at first, but soon he melts under my touch and returns the kiss.

It’s a short but deep kiss, not chaste by any means, but not overly heated either. There is no urgency.

Cas lets out a small, soft moan as we break apart. “Are you sure about this, Dean?” He asks. “I know that I… I will take all that you are willing to give, but what about you? Do you want this?”

I nod, giving him a smile. “I have to be sure, I want you, and there is no going back now. I can feel it.” I really can, it’s not an overt statement, the magnetic pull between us urging me to get closer to him is very real. After being a Fighter for long enough you learn to be able to tell when your stats are going through a major change.

And this? This is as major as it gets.

He returns my nod, “If you are sure, then so am I.” His gravelly voice, so full of resolve, sends a shiver down my spine.

I move my hand to coup his cheek and caresses it with my thumb.

He gives me the sweetest smile I’ve ever seen and it fills my heart with joy. Damn, I love him.

I pull him in for another kiss. This time with the intention of it lasting much longer. We’ve had many kisses since our first time, we’ve even slept together again after that, but none have felt quite like this.

Cas’ hands roam up my arms and my chest, making their way up to tangle up in my hair. They leave a tingle beneath my skin in their wake, a feathery light touch one would think impossible of such strong hands.

Our lips and tongues move around each other as if entangled in a sacred, slow dance.

My own hands then run down his back at the same feathery light pace his did. I take the time to savor every inch of his body under my fingers.

There are no sudden movements, no hard edges, none of the scorching, red-hot need of our first time. Yet, every touch feels deeper, it creeps under my skin and sinks into my bones.

As we pull apart a shuddering moan leaves my lips, “Cas.”

He arches his back, pressing his chest into mine when I say his name and I feel our erections begin to awaken between our bodies. He sighs against my lips, “Say my name again.”

I can’t help but smile. “You like it when I say your name?” I nibble at his ear before I whisper again, “Castiel.”

His arms tighten around me and he quivers against my body. The motion grinds out bodies together and a soft moan comes from his lips. “We should lock the door.”

I groan with a slight edge of annoyance. The prospect of separating from him for even a second is not at all appealing.

“Come on, Dean. You close the door, I’ll close the window, mmm?” He says that, but he makes no move to let go of me.

I sigh with resignation, he is right anyways. Someone coming in now would be a great inconvenience. So, despite my own desires, I let go of Cas.

I get up from the bed but actually stepping away from Cas is the difficult part. I find myself playing with his hands, running my fingers over his palms, as a way of stalling for time.

He chuckles, “You know, Dean? I am not going anywhere.” He places his hands on my cheeks and plants a soft, chaste kiss on my lips. “Not unless you want me to.”

It makes me smile. “Alright, Cas.” With that I finally head for the door and make sure to lock it properly.

When I turn back towards him the curtains have indeed been closed, his shoes are on the floor, and his jacket lays discarded over his bed. He, on the other hand, lays on my bed. The rest of his clothes are still on but he looks at me with an affectionate smirk and half lidded eyes.

On the nightstand sits the bottle of lube and the desk lamp I had been using for reading.

He reaches for the lamp and turns it on.

I smile and turn off the light by the door. I take off my jacket and my shoes as I hurry to climb back into bed with him.

“You’re playing with fire,” I tease him as soon as I can get my hands on him.

“I’m just setting the mood,” he whispers back.

“Mmm, sure.” I bury my face in his neck and let my hands roam down his navel to find the hem of his t-shirt and snake their way back up underneath it. Feeling his warm skin under my fingers once again as he shivers under them.

He chuckles, just when my hands trail up the sides of his body.

“Mmm?” I furrow my brow and move my hands over the same spot again at the same pace.

Cas chuckles a bit louder this time.

A smirk forms on my lips. “Does that tickle you?”

“No?” He says, sounding unsure. I don’t think Cas is a very good liar.

“Are you sure?” This time I tickle him on purpose and the laugh I get in return is much deeper and richer. “‘Cause it sounds like you are ticklish here.” I tease.

“Dean!” Cas calls out my name in between his laughter. He pushes at my shoulders, slowly losing control of himself but trying to get away from my hands.

I’m relentless, however. Making him writtle under me from the tickling.

“Please,” he starts to beg, “please, Dean!”

I laugh, but I stop, deciding to let Cas catch his breath.

He takes in a big gulp of air and closes his eyes. Delayed chuckles escape his lips as he tries to recover his composure. “You’re totally ruining the mood now.” He looks at me with a slight frown, but I can tell he doesn’t fully mean it.

“No, I’m not,” I reply, placing a hand on his cheek. “I mean, to be perfectly honest, I don’t mind one way or the other.”

Cas looks at me attentively, with a curious pair of eyes and his hair going off in all directions. He looks completely disheveled, and absolutely beautiful. He squints at me, tilting his head, asking me a silent question.

“It doesn’t matter, Cas.” I shake my head. “We could be anywhere, doing anything else, and I wouldn't know the difference. Because all I see, all I feel, is you.”

That might be the sappiest thing I have said in my entire life, but it’s worth it to see the way Cas’ confusion melts into an affectionate smile.

He wraps his arms around me and let’s our foreheads rest against each other. He closes his eyes, looking rather peaceful. “Dean,” he whispers my name in a husky voice, as if enjoying the way it rolls over his tongue. “You tell me that, and yet all I can think of is wanting more.”

I caress his cheek, resisting the urge to kiss him. “You can have more.” I take no time to question my answer, it just naturally flows from my tongue, but like everything else about this it feels just right.

Cas opens his eyes, just for a moment, just to look into mine. He closes them again soon after, as he pulls me in for a sweet and tender kiss.

Our mouths dance with each other lazily. Moving at their own tempo, despite my heart-rate picking up in my chest.

Our hands roam over each other’s bodies with a similar leisurely pace. Slowly creeping under our clothes and patiently moving them out of the way.

We break the kiss, in perfect sync, and take off our shirts. They both get discarded onto the floor with a familiar, plop.

I’ve seen Cas naked multiple times at this point, but my heart jumps up in delight at the prospect of freely touching his bare skin regardless. The impulse to worship every inch of him doesn’t allow me to pause for long. No, rather my mouth quickly finds its way to the crook of his neck.

Cas moves his head to the side, giving me more space to explore his body. A soft moan escapes his lips when I stop to suck on his skin, leaving a hickey behind.

He drags his hands down my back, The unbelievably slow motion makes me shiver under his touch.

I let my mouth wander, placing simple kisses I trail down towards his chest. I play with his nipples next, softly pinching them between my fingers before taking one into my mouth to suck and nibble on it.

Cas sighs in response, his voice tinged with the notes of his pleasure. His hands move up to tangle with my hair.

It’s oddly refreshing, all the soft touches and simple caresses. He is usually much more demanding. Maybe he still is, actually, he is just demanding something else.

I crawl down his navel, carefully placing down kisses as I go, until I meet the edge of his jeans. I stop there to look up at him, looking for permission.

His eyes open slowly, two blue orbs shine at me with devotion and desire. He nods softly, never taking his eyes off of me, not even one ounce of doubt in his features.

I unbutton his jeans and drag them down his legs. Inside his underwear his erection is evidently already leaking precum. I run my hand over it, a soft little tease, and he lets out a low groan in response.

He doesn’t say anything, he’s in no hurry, but his eyes beg me for more and I can’t help but comply.

I delicately pull his boxers off as well, all the way down until they fall to the floor with his jeans.

With his dick now at my complete mercy I decide to tease him a little, running my tongue along his shaft at a languid pace before licking at the precum coming from the tip.

Cas crawls his hands up to my hair, but not pulling or tugging like he usually does. No, it’s just a calm caress, he plays with the longer strands at the top, circling a finger around them as if he was trying to form them into a curl.

I kiss the tip of his cock, tasting the precum against my lips. Then I put it into my mouth and caress it with my tongue.

This earns me a low moan from Cas’ lips. “Dean.”

I answer the calling of my name by sucking on him, moving my head up and down.

An actual loud moan leaves his lips this time, “Dean,” but he says my name with no urgency, only pleasure and affection.

I let my hands drift down south, dragging them down his thighs so I can bend his knees. Then I circle his entrance with the pad of my thumb as I continue to suck him.

Cas quivers and his breath hitches when he tries to speak. “Dean—” he moans, “—the lube.”

I look up to see him trying to grab the bottle sitting on the nightstand, but he stops to moan again when I run my tongue over the tip of his cock. I chuckle and the vibration pulls yet another wet moan out of his lips.

I trail my tongue all along his shaft as I finally take it out of my mouth. “Let me take care of that,” I say and climb on top of him again to reach for the lube.

Despite how out of it he looks, panting heavily, he doesn’t stay still. He pulls me in close, wrapping his arms around me. He places a small kiss on my shoulder. The touch is so light it tickles a bit.

I chuckle, “What are you doing?” I grab the bottle of lube before he makes me forget about it again.

“Your freckles are just too pretty.” he says, then places another feather light kiss barely an inch away from the first one. “I wish—” he puts yet another kiss on my skin, “—I could kiss every single one.”

I sigh, he is adorable. I turn his head softly so that he’ll look at me.

We smile at one another and then we both move in for a kiss. It’s such a small action, such a delicate moment. But it’s also amazing, the way we move in perfect sync. Tonight we have our own pace, our own rhythm, and it’s perfect. Like a waltz dancing to the beat of our hearts.

When our lips part we stay close, keeping ourselves in the moment, still. I just bask in his presence. I close my eyes and it’s like every cell in my body is fine tuned to Cas, every inch of skin he touches vibrates with my desire for him. “I wish we could kiss forever, but I don’t want to stop here.”

I feel Cas running his hands through my hair, then placing one of them on my cheek. “Me neither,” he whispers. His other hand drags down, squishing it’s way in between our bodies.

I moan when I feel him softly palming my erection over the jeans. I had been so focused on Cas I had paid no mind to my own cock and it jumps at the sudden attention.

I find myself instinctively bucking my hips to rub against his palm, letting another moan out of my lips. “Yeah, that’s what I meant,” I say between hushed breaths.

Reluctantly, I sit up to take off my pants but, far from staying behind, Cas follows my movements.

He places his hands on the hem of my pants. “Let me,” his gravelly voice whispers into my ear.

I put my hands around him instead, he is so close that our chests are touching. As he slowly unbuckles my pants, I drag my hands down his body.

Cas takes off my jeans and my underwear at a leisurely pace, slow and lingering, like he is savoring every new inch of skin he reveals.

Once he is done they also get swiftly discarded onto the floor. Once my pants are out of the way he leans in and places a kiss on my navel. then another one on the tip of my erection.

“Another freckle?” I tease.

“Maybe,” he chuckles.

I smile and shake my head, this guy might be the end of me if I let him. And I wouldn’t even mind one bit, but there is something else calling for my attention at the moment.

I push him back onto the bed softly, with a hand on his chest. I grab the bottle of lube and sit between his legs.

After raising up his legs and coating my fingers with a generous amount of lube I circle them around the rim of his entrance. Then I introduce one of them in.

Cas moans at the small intrusion.

He moans again when I move my finger inside of him.

Soon there is a whole line of constant moans falling from his mouth as I add more fingers and stretch out his hole or tease his prostate.

I take my time with it. He usually has no patience for this, often preferring to do it himself rather than letting me tease him.

While I can’t deny I find that very hot I also really enjoy this. Pulling out more and more moans from him. I doubt there is much that I like more than Cas lost in pleasure under my ministrations.

Still, he looks at me with want and hunger, a stark shine of urgency and desire reflectis from his blown pupils, the beautiful blue of his irises almost entirely gone. “Dean,” he makes my name sounds like a plea.

He doesn’t say anything else, but he doesn’t have to. I know him, I know what he wants.

As I pull my fingers out I can feel my heart hammering in my chest with anticipation. It feels like the love and affection I have for Cas just pulls me in towards him as I slowly insert my erection into his hole.

We both moan as I get it all the way in and then wait for Cas to signal for me to start moving.

He is hot and tight around me, but it takes him no time to give me a small nod as a go ahead. He extends his arms towards me and I lean in to allow him to wrap them around me. “Stay close,” he pleads.

“As you wish,” I say.

Using my hands to support myself I begin moving my hips slowly.

Soft moans and small groans leave our lips as we continue to give in to each other.

Cas keeps his hands on me, caressing every patch of skin he can get to.

Unable to use my hands, since I need them to keep my balance, I instead press kisses all over him and nuzzle against his skin.

We don’t pick up the pace much. No, we move together, lingering in the depth of our contact, far more preoccupied with the closeness of our bodies than the pace of our movements.

“Ah—” Cas lets out a loud gasp after I purposefully angle my hips to hit his sweet spot. “Dean,” he pants, “more.” He tightens around me, grasping at my shoulders at the same time to keep me close as I shiver in response.

“Cas,” I pant as well and make sure to hit the same spot again.

Over and over I hit the same spot and our moans grow louder. Every thrust is more intense than the last, deeper and stronger.

Cas grinds his body against mine, rubbing his erection on my navel. He slowly starts to lose control, unravelling under me. He bites his lip and keeps a vice grip on my shoulders, as if he could pull me in any closer than I already am.

I keep amping up my thrust, slowly losing control over my hips too. I feel the pressure building up on my core, begging for release.

“De—an, Dean—” he gasps as I keep pushing into him, “I’m—Ah.” He shudders, unable to finish his sentence.

“You—” I pant, “—you are close?”

“Ye—es,” Cas moans. He digs his nails on my shoulder and closes his eyes before letting out another moan. “De—an?”

“Yeah—” I shudder, “—me too,” I say, knowing that it’s true. Each thrust builds on the pleasure from the other, it’s like a dam that’s about to break apart.

Everytime I push in it’s harder to pull out, harder to keep moving and not just give into the need for release.

Cas opens his eyes to look at me. His eyes, blown with pleasure and desire, are also filled with affection. “Kiss me,” his husky voice demands, filling in the small space between us.

It’s the one demand he’s given me tonight: Kiss me. So I do.

I kiss him much more fervently this time, if still with the same amount of delicate care.

It’s like our own language, and I almost wonder if we are somehow still connected to the ANIMA because I feel his love for me as surely as I did before.

I feel us, both of us, teetering on the edge of climax. It’s not long before we are coming together.

All of our muscles tense as the same time as we let ourselves go with the pleasure and release the unbearable pressure from our cores. Cas spills his cum in between our bodies, and I spill mine deep inside of him.

Arching our backs we unintentionally break apart from the kiss as a pair of loud moans escape from our lips as the last drops of our climax come out.

I feel my body go limp from the exertion afterwards, so I slowly pull out of Cas, who hisses out a low moan at the movement. I move to lay down beside him, catching my breath as I come down from my pleasure high.

A few moments later Cas moves in closer to me, cuddling against my chest. “We are sticky,” he complains in a low tone as our bodies press together once more.

I chuckle, “After all that, that is the first thing you say?”

At first he doesn’t reply, he just bites his lip and looks off to the side, but then he moves to hide his face beside my chest. “I love you,” he mumbles.

I gasp in surprise, I didn’t mean to, but I couldn’t hold it back. Despite having said it before once already, neither of us had ever brought it up again, much less actually said it.

He doesn’t really seem to understand my reaction though, as he squirms and buries his face in his hands. “Sorry! I know last time was probably just a spur of the moment,” he starts mumbling in a hurry, “and you didn’t really mean it but I—”

“Cas, stop!” I interrupt him.

He immediately stops trying to explain himself, but he doesn’t look at me. So I put a hand on his cheek and guide his face up to look at me.

His eyes are wide and unsure, his cheeks are flushed pink, and his lips look plump and red from all the kissing.

I pull him in closer to me, “Cas, you don’t have to apologize.” I shake my head with a smile. “I meant it. I still mean it, I love you.”

As soon as the words leave my lips he throws his arms around me and kisses me once more.

After that, with tons of difficulty because neither of us wanted to pull away from the other, we get up, clean a little, and take a shower. We put on our PJs and cuddle together on Cas’ bed, too tired to change the sheets of mine. It makes me reconsider changing our beds for a bigger one, it’s awfully inconvenient at times like this.

We had long drifted off into peaceful sleep when I'm suddenly awaken by the alarm system going off.

An impending sense of dread crawls under my skin as the message begins. “ALERT: CODE GRAY. REPEAT: CODE GRAY.”

My heart jumps up in my chest.

No, please, it can’t be. Tell me I heard that wrong, tell me I’m dreaming.

The message continues, unphased by the terror plaguing my mind. “This is not a drill, all Fighter / Anchor Teams head to the ANIMA station for immediate deployment.”

I anxiously wait for the message to repeat itself, feeling like it takes an eternity.

Until it does. “ALERT: CODE GRAY. REPEAT: CODE GRAY.”

My heart sinks into despair, any hope I had of being wrong, completely gone.

Before I can continue to freak out Cas places a hand on my shoulder. I turn to look at him.

His eyes are full of worry. “The scavengers?” His voice breaks the the end like he was afraid to ask.

I swallow the tight knot on my throat and give him a firm nod.

Only two people were out scavenging tonight: Benny and Jo.

A code gray means… that one of them is missing.


	11. Keep it Together

Jo sits, wrapped up tightly in a blanket. A cut on her forehead spilling blood down her face. Her eyes look wet and shiny from unshed tears.

Charlie fusses over her, trying to calm her down. While Bobby scribbles over a map, a deep frown furrowing his brow.

The sight fills me with both relief and intense guilt, because if Jo is here in the ANIMA room, waiting for us, then that means Benny didn’t come back with her. I feel my heart constricting in my chest, confused and desperate.

The moment I heard the announcement I knew I would be distraught by whatever I found in this room, one way or another it would be painful, but it doesn’t make it hurt any less.

“Dean!” The moment Jo sees me she jumps from the bench and walks towards me in wobbly legs. “I’m so sorry, Dean! We—” She stumbles over her feet.

I rush in to support her and stop her from falling just in time.

She doesn’t even react, she just starts rambling. “We were surrounded and the building was unstable, I told him we could both make it, but he didn’t—” her breath hitches as tears start streaming down her face, “—he was hurt and didn’t think it was possible so he stayed behind and he—”

Jo begins sobbing as she tries to recount what happened, although she isn’t making much sense she just continues speaking, “—they were pushing at the doors and the walls— it couldn’t take it— and he pushed me out of the way. I—” She grabs my shirt with such force that her hands shake, “—they wouldn’t give up…” She seems to finally begin to calm down and let’s go of my shirt, collapsing into my arms. “I didn’t know what to do…”

I take in a deep breath and run my fingers through her blonde hair. “Hey, it’s okay. It’s not your fault.”

Cas, who had entered behind me, places a hand on my shoulder.

I turn to look at him and I see my own worry reflected in his features. It gives me a small amount of comfort.

I walk Jo back to the bench. “Please just calm down, okay? You need to rest as well. We will go find Benny.”

She gives me a small nod and sits back down next to Charlie, who wraps her arms around Jo to console her.

I turn to Bobby, “Tell me what we know.”

“Shadow Hounds,” he says, “a bunch of them, from what Jo said.”

I nod, Shadow Hounds are one of the few beings in our world able to exist both in the 5th Dimension and here, it’s not entirely unusual for them to give the scavengers some trouble, but this is out of the ordinary they usually are not so good at keeping track of humans on this side. As if their senses were dulled, is what we assumed. But what Jo said, that they ‘wouldn’t give up’, sounds an awful lot more like how they behaved when chasing after me last time.

I warned Bobby about this, and it fills the air with tension.

When I don’t say anything, Bobby turns the map towards me, “Benny should be here.” He points at the theater downtown, close to where I usually meet with Anna.

I try my best to hide the nervousness that raises up in my chest at the news.

It will be fine, we will just go in, kick some Shadow Hound butt, and then the rescue team will be able to go get Benny.

If Bobby notices anything off about me he doesn’t mention it at all. Instead he just proceeds to brief me on the standard rescue procedure. Nothing different, nothing special.

Get there, get rid of the threat, come back. The ground team is the one in charge of actually bringing Benny back, and our job is to clear the way of any hostiles for them to have a safe trip.

The stone cold feeling inside my chest is nothing. So long as Cas’ hand is holding mine, I’ll keep it together. I’ll ignore my guilt and my worry, and I’ll keep it together.

I have to, if there is any chance of me finding Benny. I have to.

Once the whole team is aware of the mission and the location we will be appearing in, as close to Benny as possible, we go in to connect to the ANIMA. Sam stops by to give me a comforting hug, he must have been really worried too, I return the affection, but I don’t linger on it, we don’t have the time to waste.

Despite how nervous I am, I manage to relax enough to feel the usual sensation of falling asleep when I connect to the ANIMA.

Shortly after that Cas’ voice sounds in the back of my mind, *Dean, open your eyes,* just like usual.

We are really close to the theater, as a matter of fact, we might be too close because as soon as I open my eyes the first thing I see is the biggest pack of Shadow Hounds I’ve seen since the early days.

From the top of the roof we appeared on we are already starting out with a vantage point to see the full scale of the swarm of nasty dog-like creatures.

“What the actual, fuck?” Alicia sounds adequately disgusted and shocked by the sight.

I do not blame her, but we don’t have time to marvel at the sight.

“Everyone, get your weapons ready,” I say, making sure to keep my voice low. “And take cover, I suggest you pick something you can snipe with.” We need to use any advantage we can get, and being able to get them from a distance is surely one of them.

I bite my lip as I realize I might not be able to follow my own advice. Jo is frightened, Benny is… obviously not an option, Lisa’s just doesn’t have the range—

*Use Blue Eyes, Dean.*

Cas’ suggestion takes me by surprise. *What? Are you sure?*

We haven’t had time to check my stats yet, although he is looking at them right now, until Charlie tests them properly we can’t really be sure that’s okay.

I feel Cas pushing his affection towards me, with a healthy dose of trust and confidence. *I am.* His feelings come at me so much clearer now, to the point I even suspect they might affect my own as I instantly feel much better about the idea.

Still, I trust him, above anything else. So I do as he asks, I close my eyes and focus my mind on him. His touch, his eyes, and our love for each other. The intensity of his stare, and the deep connection that we share. My mind fills with memories and emotions, I’m not sure how long it takes me as it feels as though I get lost in them.

But when I open my eyes I get startled by the realization that I’m several feet off the ground. And I don’t mean that I’m on top of a building! I mean I’m floating in the damn air and everyone below is looking at me like I just grew a second head out of my back!

I tighten my grip on Blue Eyes confirming that things just didn’t go awfully wrong and turn my head to look around. That’s when I see the pair of feathery black wings coming out of my back, flapping softly, as if they had been there the whole time.

I put a hand over my own mouth to stop myself from screaming.

*Cas, Explain!* I beg, *please tell me you know what the fuck is going on!*

I feel his shock pushing its way into my mind as well, mixing in with my own. It’s almost as if our emotions are trying to merge into one.

Eventually he manages to form a reply. *I’m… not sure why this is happening, but they are a lot like the wings Balth had before, Dean.*

Okay, okay that’s fine. *So maybe… it’s you?*

*What?* He sounds confused.

I’m about to elaborate when a howl pulls my attention back to the ground. *We’ll discuss this later.*

I take a deep breath and manage to get back down on the level of everyone else.

“Dean, what—” Gabriel begins to speak, but I interrupt him with a finger over my lips.

I shake my head, now is not the time.

He takes in a deep breath and nods.

I smile, sometimes the sugar-maniac is such a good Fighter too, I’m happy he joined the team after all.

I signal for everyone to come in closer so I can give them instructions. “Alright anyone who can attack from a distance stay here.”

Both Alicia and Jack give me a firm nod.

“Alright, then Gabriel, we need to find Benny.” I take a peek at the wings on my back as an idea forms in my head. “We don’t know what floor he is in, but part of the building collapsed.” I point to the right side of the building, where a good portion of the concrete has completely fallen apart, covering various floors. “From Jo’s story Benny should be somewhere between those floors. We will split up, you begin from the lower floor and I—” I point at my wings, “—will start at the top.”

Gabe gives me a shocked expression for 0.2 seconds, then he turns into an excited 5 year old kid. “Wait, really? Does that mean I get to do cool jumpy stuff?!”

I roll my eyes. “Yes, Gabriel, you get to do ‘cool jumpy stuff’ to get to the right floor.”

“Awesome, Dean-o, I’m in!”

I sigh, but decide to leave him be as I turn back to Alicia and Jack. “Jack, you cover Gabriel until he gets in.”

“I won’t let him get hurt,” Jack reassures me with a smile, he then turns to cover the left side of the building.

I turn to Alicia, “I need you to…” I look down at the swarm of Shadow Hounds down on the floor, “...clean up that mess.”

“A pleasure,” she says. She really hates those things.

With that in mind, I stand at the edge of the roof and, holy shit, get ready to fly to the other side. “Turn your communicators on,” I say before I just go and take the leap.

I remember when I was a kid that people said you could fly in your dreams just by wanting to. Actually, flying here is not much different than doing others things, it turns out. It’s not the wings that let me get to the other side safely, not really. It’s just me telling myself that I can.

Or at least that’s what it feels like.

*You got used to that quite fast,* Cas chuckles.

*I have to,* I say. *There is no time to waste, Cas I—*

*Hey, it’s okay, we’ll find him.* He sends comforting waves of affection at me and I feel his warmth fill me up and calm me down, like wrapping yourself in a warm blanket during a cold night.

I sigh, *Thanks, Cas. For keeping me in check.*

I get no verbal reply, just his feelings rubbing all over mine.

It’s an odd thing to describe, but I have no other words for it.

I head for the rooftop access and open the door. It’s dark and humid inside, this place has seen better days.

The search goes on for a while. The sounds of the fight going on outside are loud, but in here it’s very quiet. Finding ways to move through the floors is sometimes hard and I often find myself having to kick debris out of my way.

After we have explored a few couple of floors Cas suddenly calls my attention. *Dean, I think we are close.*

*Yeah? Can you see him?*

I feel Cas intently focusing for a moment, but I myself see nothing.

*I can’t… see him, no, but I know where he is.* Cas’ voice sounds concerned, but decide not to ask why and just press forward.

With Cas giving me directions I soon find myself face to face with a closed door. I can’t open it because it’s locked, but it’s not like Benny can hear me, even if he is in there, so I have no choice but to knock the door down.

He might be able to tell, depends on how focused he is. Me breaking the door down is not the same as a Shadow Hound doing it, the door will stay down only on this side of dimensional divide and will go back to how it was before once I disconnect from the ANIMA. So I do it.

I take a step back and kick at the door, placing all of my will power into it, and I manage to bring it down.

Surely enough on the other side of the door Benny is lying down on a makeshift bed.

He seems to be a little out of it, his hand is covered with his own blood.

My heart sinks in with terror, all the fear and anxiety I had been keeping at bay up until this point come crashing back at me, like a tsunami of emotions. They rip every trace of happiness from my core and leave me bare.

Despite knowing that he can’t see me, that he can’t hear me I rush to kneel down next to him.

He breathes with difficulty and is sweating bullets. His—his shirt is full of long gashes and blood…

Lots of blood.

No… *Cas! Cas, talk to Bobby tell him—*

*Dean… I—I don’t think,* Cas’ voice is weak and filled with pain, despite having interrupted me. *There is not a lot of time.*

*I know that Cas! So tell them to hurry!* I yell back, exasperated.

*Dean…* That’s all he says, concern and comfort pushing towards me, but I recoil at the touch and my wings quiver in pain.

Next to me Benny starts coughing up blood.

My eyes sting with unshed tears as I wrap my hand around his. I feel that it’s cold and clammy from the blood and the sweat.

*Dean, maybe you should…* Cas wavers, I feel him searching for his words. *Come back,* he whispers, *your stats—*

*I’m not going anywhere!* I bite my lip as I tighten my grip on Benny’s hand, wishing he could feel it, and yet glad that he doesn’t, because that means he is still alive.

Cas grows sad, although it’s hard to tell because my own distress drowns out his almost entirely. He does keep trying to comfort me, to support me, and it makes me angry.

“I don’t want you to coddle me! I want you to do something!” I actually yell out this time, unable to control myself as tear falls down my cheek and onto Benny’s hand.

Benny stirs up then, he opens his pale blue eyes slowly, as if it takes a great effort out of him. “Dean?” He looks around in confusion, “Oh God, I must finally be delirious.”

I feel my body shake in response. He heard me, didn’t he? I— I can at least talk to him, but…

But that means…

*He’s dying,* Cas fills out the words for me and I feel him through our link sharing in my pain. It’s not as strong as mine, not by a long shot, but he is here with me. I don’t have to be alone through this.

*Dean, you should…*

*Yeah,* I reply to him, sending him the little bit of gratitude my heavy heart manages to muster. *I will, just stay with me.*

*I won’t go anywhere.* This time when he sends me his comfort I accept it.

“He—hey, Benny.” I try speaking again, to see if he’ll hear me.

“Dean.” He sounds much more sure this time, and he looks in my general direction even though his eyes obviously are not focusing on me. He can’t see me… yet.

“Oh, what the hell. Came to see your old pal’ Benny off one last time?” He says in a joking tone.

I chuckle despite everything, I just let myself pretend for a moment that this isn’t ripping my heart to shreds. “Yeah, can’t let you go without saying goodbye, can I?”

He smiles, “Damn right you can’t. I—” he starts coughing again.

I crawl in closer to him trying to guess whether or not he’ll be able to feel my touch yet.

When he manages to open his eyes again he actually looks at me. He laughs, it’s rough and not very fluid, but he laughs. “What are you, an angel?” He tries to reach his free hand forward to touch my wing.

I move in closer to allow his fingers to brush against the feathers. I try my best to smile when he does, but another tear falls down my face anyways.

“You look just like Dean,” he says, his voice soft and affectionate.

“I am Dean.” I tell him, holding his hand up to my chest. “It’s me, buddy.”

He doesn’t question it, he just smiles and moves on with his conversation. “I’m happy to see you, I missed Dean.”

“I know—” I sob, I feel like an asshole. I am an asshole.

*Dean, you didn’t know this would happen,* Cas pipes up in the back of my mind, keeping me company, keeping me in check.

“I know—” I start again, despite my voice breaking. “—But I’m sorry, I really am.” Another tear falls down my face and lands on his hand.

He tilts his head to the side, then looks down at the place where the tear fell. “Are ya’ crying, buddy?” His voice is rough, but I can still hear the surprise in it.

I nod, “Yeah, it’s hard not to.”

He tries to reach for my face with his clean hand, but he can’t, he is too weak to move much. So I lean in for him and he places his hand on my cheek whipping my tears away. “It’s okay, buddy. We all have ta’ go at one point, right?”

I don’t know what to tell him, I just wish it wasn’t like this.

“They won’t get here in time, ye’?” He must be asking about the rescue team.

I close my eyes, trying to hold back my tears as I shake my head, remembering what Cas told me. “They won’t.”

He chuckles, “So I got ganked by a bunch of Shadow Hounds—” he coughs a little, but it’s not much, “—so what? At least ya’re here.”

I run a hand through his hair, trying to comfort him.

He stays silent, seemingly just enjoying the comfort of my touch as he looks off into the distance.

Suddenly his eyes start to shine with unshed tears. “Say, Dean,” his voice is grave and rough, like a low rumbling motor. “Will you miss me?” He doesn’t look at me, he keeps his eyes looking up at the ceiling instead.

My breath hitches in my throat as I try to form the right words to say. “Yes—” I try not to sob again, “—every single day, Benny.”

He closes his eyes and a tear runs down his cheek. He moves to rest his head against my leg and whispers, “So will I.”

I call his name a lot after that, between sobs and screams, and Cas keeps telling me it’ll be okay, but Benny never opens his eyes again.


	12. Falling Apart

“This is entirely your fault, old man!” I yell at Bobby, and this time Cas is not here to try to calm me down. No, Cas was forced to stay in our room, as if we were some kind of criminals he had to interrogate separately.

Somehow Bobby manages to keep his composure, but there is still an edge of anger in his tone. “Really, boy? You breaking the rules is my fault?”

Sitting between us, on top of his desk, lies my latest Stat Report and Service Record. A little file he requested after I came back from… losing Benny, and told Bobby he could go fuck off.

I admit it might not have been my wisest moment, to yell at him that we could be working much faster in getting rid of the pillars if he helped us out… He obviously didn’t take long to read into that, and so here we are now.

“Because this is important, damn it!” I smack my hands on the table. “Don’t you get it? The Shadow Hounds are getting worse, the world is_ dying_, Bobby. And you would have me sit around and do nothing?” I point a finger at him, “I warned you about this! I told you that Anna said the attacks were only gonna get worse! Haven’t you noticed most of our missions we’ve been fighting Hounds instead of aliens?”

“Stop talking nonsense! Nothing has changed for the past 14 years, why the hell would it change now?” Bobby doesn’t even realize how irrational he is being, does he?

I chuckle, “You are so content with the status quo you just keep finding your way to justify it and be okay with it.” The anger and pain coil around my heart like a slow poison. “You know what? Maybe you are okay with this because Jo survived, but I still lost someone I loved! And what do you propose we do about it? Ignore the warning signs and move on?!”

Bobby clenches his teeth, giving me a warning look. “Dean—”

“No! I’m not gonna fucking shut up! What are you gonna do when we lose someone else like this? Just shrug again and say ‘Oh, well what can you do?’” I feel like a fucking cynic, going mad under the unbearable burden of knowing too much. I shake my head, “If you want me to stop doing what I think its right then you are gonna have to force me!”

“Then I will!” Bobby suddenly slams his fist on the table. “You won’t listen to reason? Fine, then I revoke you from your position.”

I want to say that he can’t do that, but the truth is that he can.

I shake my head, “You can’t stop me from using the ANIMA, I’m already a Fighter.”

“A _Closed_ Fighter.” Bobby gives me a dead serious glare as he re-opens my Stats Report.

I had never seen him look at me like that, not in all of these years. I swallow, suddenly feeling parched. It reminds me of my dad, it’s a faint memory, but it’s there. The words that he said, however, those words sting when I patch together just what they mean.

“No…” I whisper, shaking my head, “you—you wouldn’t do that.”

“I will if it’s the only way to keep you away from trouble.” Bobby crosses his arms. “And it seems like it is. I suggest you tell Castiel to pack up his bags.”

Any further conversation after that point is, of course, completely fruitless.

I have been storming out of Bobby’s office a lot lately, but this is by far the harshest instance of that. I make my way back to our room and every step is agonising, at first I’m fuming, angry and vengeful with thoughts of how I could possibly get away with not following his instructions…

But by the time I open the door to our room I feel defeated. When Cas jumps up asking for details of how it all went, I hardly know what to tell him.

Somehow the only thing I manage to say is “You have to go.”

The look of hurt and confusion on his features pierces my heart. I really don’t like this, yet I also didn’t expect that it was possible.

“I—I’m not a Fighter anymore,” I try to explain, “and you are not my Anchor.” I look down at the floor, “Bobby revoked my position.”

It feels like my world is crumbling down all over again and it’s hard to breathe.

Cas places his hand on my cheek, turning me to look towards him. “Hey,” his gravelly voice is so calm, it’s like medicine for my wounds. “It’ll be okay, Dean. We’ll fix this, maybe not now, but we will.” He sounds so certain, I have no clue how that’s even possible but it gives me just the tiniest bit of hope.

I give him a soft nod and then he plants a chaste kiss on my lips.

“Even if we are not together, we’ll still be connected.” He says, holding my hands, and I feel it somehow.

I have no way to explain it, but our bond has only gotten stronger. To a point that even outside of the ANIMA I can feel Cas… I can’t talk to him, or hear him, but I know he is there. I thought I was going mad due to all that’s been happening lately, but maybe I’m onto something.

“Do you mean that?” I ask him.

“Of course I do.” He smiles, his eyes filled with affection.

“I mean… do you feel it too, Cas?” I’m not sure how else to ask this. Is this feeling real? The feeling that we really are still connected.

The way Cas’ expression fills with recognition and understanding too says a lot more than I expected. He tightens his grip on my hands, he looks down at them with a somber expression before giving me a nod.

“How..?” I whisper out the question, while keeping him close.

“It—it doesn’t bother you?” His voice trembles, full of insecurities.

I smile at him, caressing his hand with my thumb as a way to reassure him. “Of course not, why would you think that?”

Cas keeps his eyes looking down at our hands, but his voice sounds more calm. “I spoke with Sam about being an Anchor. I have discovered that we… are not quite the same.”

I frown, but the fragility in Cas’ demeanor keeps me from bombarding him with questions. Instead, I decide to let him set the pace of the conversation. “Do you want to talk about it?”

He stays silent at first, but eventually he nods. He pulls me towards his bed and we both sit down on the edge. He stays silent for a bit, I get the feeling he is looking for what to say, where to begin, so I wait.

Eventually Cas speaks in his low, gravelly voice, he pronounces each word with calm and stillness. Like he measures each word to make sure it’s the right one. “You know that I am a first generation Anchor and I… I told you before that we didn’t really know what we were doing back then.” He pauses for a moment and shakes his head. “Do you know how the ANIMAs were created?”

I nod softly, “Chuck and Amara, the leaders of the H.C.A. found some alien tech that they were able to reverse engineer into becoming the ANIMA.” We were told this back when Squadron #5 was first formed, we were some of the last to join the H.C.A. There is only one more squadron after ours, Squadron #6.

“Did… did they ever tell you how the Anchor - Fighter dynamic even came to being?” He asks this with an edge of nervousness under his tone.

I think on it for a moment and realize that they didn’t… They told us _why_ it was needed. They told us _what_ they did to achieve it, injecting a very small dose of a special serum into the Anchor so that the telepathic connection could be established. But they never told us _how_ they figured that out, or _what_ the serum had.

The realization suddenly frightens me. They had to figure it out somehow… I led out a shaky breath. “No.”

Cas takes in a deep breath before speaking once more. “You know? When I decided to come here, when I found out we were compatible, Chuck and Amara couldn’t agree on letting me go. They only agreed once I voiced my own desires. Now I wonder if the reason is because I know too much.”

I shake my head as the ideas start spinning around in my head. I want to ask him what exactly does he mean by that, but I decided to let him explain things himself so I keep quiet. Instead I scoot in closer to him and place a hand around his shoulder. “It’s okay Cas.”

Cas nods weakly and leans into me for comfort. After a moment he speaks again, keeping his voice very low. “The first Team who used the ANIMA: Michael and Luciel, two brothers, died. And we— we thought, it needs to be done, right? How else can we figure out how to use this thing? So we kept trying different things, and more people died until…” He looks down at his lap and I feel him taking a deep breath. “Until something worked.”

“They experimented on you…” I should be fuming, a part of me is, but I’m mostly sad. Sad that Cas had to go through that, had to see his friends die and then wrestle with the fact that he might die as well. I tighten my hold on his shoulder and pull him in closer. “I’m so sorry, Cas.”

“It’s… it’s okay, Dean.” He says, he sounds so vulnerable I wish I could scream that it’s not okay. But I don’t say anything, I just keep him close to me.

Cas returns my affections, pulling me in close as well, and placing his hand on my chest. He nuzzles against my neck and it makes me smile.

We stay still like that for a while. I’d started to think the discussion was over, that he didn’t want to talk about it anymore, but to my surprise he does speak up again.

“The serum that they gave us, it has Alien DNA. Amara was a Biochemist or something like that? I’m not sure, but—” he lifts his face and looks at me, letting out a sigh. “—because she didn’t know how little we needed to establish the connection safely she started with a very high dose.”

It’s horrible, it is, but it makes sense. The aliens have telepathy, humans don’t, so it makes sense that they would need to find a way to give that to the Anchors… 

Aliens also have wings… well Anna does.

I nod to myself as the details start to fall into place. “That’s it.” I let out without thinking.

Cas looks at me with a hint of confusion, with that familiar squint that I shouldn’t find so cute.

I cup his face between my hands and caress his cheek. “The wings! They are yours, right?”

Cas looks at me, his mind clearly going through what I’m saying until he nods slowly. “Yes, that does make sense.”

I nod with more enthusiasm than I probably should. “And this—” I grab his hand and place it on my chest. “—This is _real_. The connection that we feel is really there.”

As if to prove my point I feel him pushing his emotions towards me. A soft mixture of affection, wonder, and curiosity.

I respond to him right away, sending some of my own feelings for him back. My heart jumps up in my chest when his expression fills with happiness at the exchange.

I pull him in closer and place a kiss on his forehead. “No matter how long we have to stay away, we’ll still have this.”

He nods softly and his eyes shine with unshed tears, as the exchange rapidly sounds more and more like a goodbye.

I pull him into a hug. “It’s okay. I’m not going to give up, I’ll find a way to help Anna and merge the two dimensions back into one, and then—” I tighten my arms around him, suddenly feeling protective, I’m very aware that soon he’ll be taken away from me. “—then we’ll be together again.”

“Yes, Dean.” Is the only thing he answers.

We spend the night in each others arms after that, afraid to let go, afraid for morning to come. But no matter how much we wish the clock would stop it doesn’t.

Surely as night turns into day, the moment comes for Cas to go.

Huddled together in the main entrance, Sam, Gabriel, Jo, Charlie, and Lisa all came to say goodbye to Cas. Each one gives him a hug. Jo is crying, she’s been having a hard time since what happened in her last mission. Charlie keeps an arm around her shoulders, trying to comfort her.

Between promises to keep in touch somehow and reaffirming he’ll come back some day, we are told repeatedly that he needs to go already.

Before he heads out for the door he throws his arms around me and gives me one last kiss.

It ends far too soon however and the faint connection between us becomes dimmer as he walks further and further away.

I stand by the window, trying my best to stop the pain from crushing me any further as he gets into the car and finally leaves without me knowing when I’ll see him again.

I take a deep breath, but I’m angry. This should have never happened. “Damn it!” I hit the window and bite my lip as tears threaten to fall. I lost Benny and now Cas is gone as well. This stupid war is taking far too many things from me.

I feel a small, delicate hand touching my shoulder in a supportive gesture. I turn to find Lisa and I can’t help but to jump away a little at the contact. I still feel so guilty, both about Benny, and about her as well. Because I can’t be with her anymore…

She doesn’t get angry or even seem confused at my reaction. Instead her features fill with understanding as she comes to stand beside me. “It’s okay, Dean.”

I turn to look at her properly, because it feels like she is saying way more than she is.

“I know he is special to you,” she continues, “and I know it’s not the same anymore. I just wanted to tell you…” She looks down at the floor for a moment and ultimately takes my hand in hers. “I just want you to be happy, we all want that.”

I look up and take a peek behind her shoulder. Sam, Gabriel, Jo, and Charlie all stand together, nodding in agreement. When I look back at Lisa she’s smiling.

“We will help you fix this, Dean. In anyway we can.” She tightens her grip on my hand as she says, “I know Benny would agree with me.”

I pull her into a hug after that. It’s different than before. I still love her, but it’s more platonic now. Knowing that she accepts that brings me so much relief.

The rest of the group join the hug as well and I feel much less alone.

Besides, in that moment I feel it. My connection with Cas, it’s still there. It’s faint, but it’s there, it gives me hope.

I send him those feelings of love and hope, and he sends me back his pure affection. I smile, feeling warm inside.

Yeah, we are not alone.


	13. Get In Line

I wish I could say that after four months of having dreams once more I’d get used to it but I can’t. The fact that every time I dream it’s actually about Cas leaving probably doesn’t help...

To be honest, it ticks me off, seeing that memory all the time, even though I’m the one who chose it.

*Sorry, Dean,* comes Anna’s shrill voice from the back of my mind. *You can open your eyes now.* Thank god she finally came to pick me up.

I open my eyes and, after quickly noting that I'm on a rooftop in New York, I turn to look at her. *You don’t have to apologize, I picked that memory.* The memory sort of works like a coordinate, it’s how she is able to find me. So everytime we go out to take down the Pillars, I dream about that day first.

*I know, it’s to remind yourself of why you are doing this, as you told me.* She pauses for a moment and closes her eyes, taking in a deep breath. *But I am still regretful for the part I played in separating you from your mate.*

*You know what would make it all better?* I ask, looking off to the side at the Dimensional Pillar sitting atop the Statue of Liberty.

She chuckles. *Yes,* her voice fills up with accomplishment, *that’s the last one.*

*We ready to roll then?* I ask.

*Yes, everyone is ready to roll. As soon as the Pillar falls Bravo Team is ready to take over the ‘Castle’*

*What about here?* I ask, keeping my eyes on the Pillar. Since we figured out that Anna could take me out of my dreams so that I could help her our little war against the establishment has ramped up a lot.

We figured out how to bypass the pillars’ defensive hallucinations and have become quite effective at taking them down. Anna’s plan is almost complete. Soon we’ll bring the two dimensions back into one, and when we do she will take over the leadership on the alien side and we will begin diplomatic talks so that both sides can live in peace.

Back home everyone else is ready for what's about to go down as well. Sam, Gabriel, and Charlie are all in the ANIMA room in case we need back up. Meanwhile Jo and Lisa are ready to sneak into the communication center and call the other Squadrons to explain what happened before Bobby can throw a fit.

The Queen hasn’t just laid down and let everything just happen though. No, there are soldiers roaming about almost all the Pillars now, they know what we are doing. They are trying to buy time to fix the other ones, but we have been working much faster than them. It’s come to the point that we only speak through the telepathic link so as to make sure no one listens in on us. At first it was odd to constantly speak to her in my mind despite being right beside her, but at this point I’m used to it.

*Alpha Team is going to clear a path for us, as always.* She says.

Alpha Team is the one Crowley is in charge of. That’s fine, I guess, I can’t say I like Crowley, but he definitely knows what he is doing when it comes to directing a team out on the battlefield.

I give her a nod. “Let’s turn that thing off then.”

“Oh, I don’t think so.” That…

That’s not funny, and it doesn’t sound like a joke either.

Anna and I turn around slowly, making sure to not lose our physical contact for long, to do so would be akin to me suddenly being disconnected from my Anchor.

It is hard not to see the half dozen of guns being pointed at us. Guns that are held by the members of Alpha Team.

Standing in the middle is their leader and owner of that voice, orange skin, red eyes, and black hair… I knew there was a reason why I hated the color orange so much.

“Crowley’Alashton just what do you think you are doing?” Anna glares daggers at him, but I know there is not much she can do in this situation. Bravo Team is hundreds of miles away and most likely completely unaware. It’s just us.

“Taking over the throne, Princess Annael’stierck _Van’Ignahi”_ Crowley enunciates all the syllables in her last name as if they had some sort of deeper meaning.

I can’t deny that they must because clearly it makes everyone else sneer.

*What is going on?* I ask her, *What’s wrong with your last name?*

*It’s the Queen’s last name, that’s what’s wrong with it!* Her voice is filled with vile rage, I feel that even if we weren’t linked telepathically at the moment I would still be able to tell.

I turn to her, there is just no way. *You are the Queen’s daughter?*

Crowley preens when he notices my reaction. “Good to know you didn’t even tell your human pet.” A smug smile forms in his face.

I glare at him, not an innocent ‘if stares could kill kind of glare.’ No, I have gotten far better at using mental energy, and when I glare at him I fully intend to hurt him—

“Ah, not so fast Winchester.” A smirk rests on his face, he seems completely unfazed by the threat I pose to him.

I soon understand why as I feel the barrel of a gun against the back of my head.

“You didn’t think I only brought half of Alpha Team with me, did you?” He laughs.

If I was connected to the ANIMA right now this would be a joke, but I’m not. In this position I have no battlesuit, just my regular human clothes. We are at a clear disadvantage.

“Now, you two,” Crowley slowly begins raising his voice, “will finally start doing what I bloody want!” He yells, a red tone showing under his orange skin.

I hold back the reflex to flinch back, even if I'm at his mercy I refuse to give in that easily.

“Not scared yet? Don’t worry,” he says, going back to his smoky low tone, “I can fix that.” He winks.

With those words the guy who had the barrel of his gun pointing at my head turns to point it at Anna instead.

“Annael’stierck, let go of Dean Winchester’s hand.” He commands.

“What?” Anna’s voice croaks out, and I can hear the visceral horror in her voice.

It’s like a death sentence, and he isn’t forcibly pulling her away. No, he is forcing her to leave me to my own internal demons in exchange for her life.

I take in a deep breath and held my head up high. *Do it.*

She looks at me nervously, but I do not turn to her, I keep my eyes on Crowley.

*Dean…*

*Hey I survived something like this once, right?* I try to sound confident. It’s pointless though, we both know that was with Cas holding on to me. Despite the faint connection I have with him still being active in some part of my mind, Cas is not here this time.

“Enough chatting,” Crowley says, feigning boredom. “I’ll give you till… ten?” He shrugs.

“One”

*I can’t just let that happen you’ll die!* She complains.

“Two”

*And if you don’t let me go we will both die.*

“Three”

*You can try to wake up!* She pleads, desperate for a solution.

“Four”

*There is no time for that, Anna!* I take a moment to look around, thinking of a way to convince her.

What I find is an opening.

“Seven” He just skipped two numbers, his voice growing increasingly impatient.

I feel the adrenaline rush through my veins as a plan begins to form in my brain. *How are your wings doing?* I ask her, remembering she got hurt a couple of weeks back while we tried to take down another pillar.

*They are fine now, why?*

*Because you are gonna need them!* I reply, showing her my plan through our mental link.

“EIGHT”

*Dean, no, wait!*

*No time! If you want both of us to make it alive someone has to go get help, and you are the only one who can fly.*

I feel her hesitation.

“NINE”

Then, her determination. *Alright, do it!*

I focus every fiber of my body on speeding up, much like I would do when I sprint, and in one swift motion I pick her up in my arms and take a spin.

She uses the momentum, and me, to jump up in the air and over the edge of the building. She falls, and then she flies back up going off into the distance.

Crowley yells for everyone to go after her.

I on the other hand, collapse onto the floor, as the 5th Dimension tries to crush my very existence. The pain immediately makes me dizzy.

The last thing I see is the dark night sky.

The last thing I think about is Cas.

Then it all fades to black.


	14. Frantic

Life back in Squadron #1 shouldn’t seem so dull.

I’m back home, right? I should feel happy. But, when before I used to miss this place, now I miss Squadron #5 far more than I expected.

I have been trying to feel happy for the past four months to no avail. The place I used to love is much too dull now, and the only moments I feel happy are the few times I get to talk to Dean at the Communication Station. Thankfully Alfie works there and he manages to sneak me in a few times a month so I can talk to Dean.

Chuck really isn’t much happier than Bobby about what Dean and I did, albeit he is a little more forgiving of the fact that I am not up to finding a new Fighter. Something Bobby suggested I do so that he could finally guarantee Dean ‘stayed out of trouble.’

I’m not an angry person but, even though I know Bobby means well, it just doesn’t sit well with me at all.

Worse is I don’t even know how things with Anna are going since Dean is worried of Bobby finding out about our conversations. All he keeps telling me is ‘soon.’

And so I spend most of my days out in the gardens, helping Joshua take care of the plants. Or spending time with Hannah whenever Inias is not hogging all of her time, it’s not easy, but I understand. Hannah and Inias are an Anchor - Fighter team after all.

Inias doesn’t have wings. Now I know this is because the dose they gave to Hannah is much smaller than the one given to me. She only became an Anchor recently, to replace me.

It’s late afternoon when Alfie comes running into the garden looking for me. “Castiel!”

I look up from the flowers I had been planting in the greenhouse, Joshua explained they are medicinal and had to be planted with care. I squint at him, tilting my head to the side.

The moment he sees me he rushes to my side. He begins talking rapidly, barely taking any time to breathe properly. “Castiel, it’s your Fighter! His brother called or something, apparently it’s also an unauthorized call so you need to hurry up and go right now, there is no time. They could find out at any moment!”

I shake my head, trying to process what he said. “You mean Dean?”

“Yes! That guy, he is in trouble!” Alfie sighs, looking down at the floor. “I think he is in big trouble.”

“What—” I swallow the knot forming on my throat. “—What is wrong with Dean, Alfie? Tell me.”

“He’s—” Alfie cracks his knuckles, a nervous habit of his. “—He is not waking up, Cas.”

No, that can’t be. I reach out for Dean in the back of my mind, trying to make sure he is okay. To my relief I can still feel him there on the other side of our connection, but something is not right, his emotions are messy, chaotic, and directionless. He is alive, but he is not okay.

I get up in a hurry, heading for the Communication Station and hoping that Sam will still be on the line. Alfie comes with me at a hurried pace.

Thankfully when I get there Sam _is _still connected and I pick up the line. “Sam, this is Castiel. What’s going on with Dean?”

“Oh, thank God. Cas, Dean is asleep. He stopped taking his anti-sleeping pills so that he could meet Anna by dreaming, _that’s_ how he has been taking down the pillars.”

“Damn it, Dean.” I curse under my breath, no wonder he didn’t want to give me too many details! “And now he won’t wake up?”

Sam sighs. “Yes, we don’t know what to do.” He sounds so defeated, but he continues speaking. “Dean told me to call you first if anything happened to him.”

I nod to myself. Smart, if he was actually gone for good I would be able to tell. This is still not good, however, him not waking up plus the messy emotions I get from him, these all points to one thing. Dean’s somehow stuck in the 5th Dimension. “Sam, something most have happened to Dean in the 5th Dimension, I believe he is stuck.”

“What?!” Sam sounds about two seconds from freaking out.

“Listen carefully, my connection with Dean is…” I take a deep breath, trying to find the right way to put it. “...very strong.” I don’t have time to explain the details to him, but he needs to know what he needs to know. “I _know_ for sure that Dean is still alive. We just need to find him and restore his connection to our world.”

“You say that like it’ll be so easy!” Sam’s voice trembles with worry.

“It won’t,” I admit. “But if we don’t try we’ll lose him for sure.” And I am not willing to do that. Not now, not ever.

After a small pause Sam clear his throat. “Alright, we’ll do it then. Gabriel and I will go look for him.”

“So will I—”

“You mean you’ll—”

“Yes! Sam we don’t have any time to waste. Listen, I’ll meet up with Gabriel in Downtown Houston, South of the Old Theater.”

“Alright, then—” Sam stops and I can faintly hear footsteps in the background. “I need to go now!” He hangs up.

I turn to Alfie, who looks terrified.

“If anyone asks, this never happened.” I whisper as I also hang up the phone line.

Alfie nods. He places a hand on my shoulder. “Good luck Castiel.”

I nod in acknowledgement and then rush out, looking for Hannah. If anyone can get me to the 5th Dimension it’s gonna be her.

Thankfully it doesn’t take me long to find her. She’s in the cafeteria having dinner and I quickly grab a tray and pretend to sit down beside her to do the same. 

However, when she tries to greet me I instead grab her arm and pull her in closer to whisper in her ear. “Hannah, I need you to help me. I need to get to the 5th Dimension.”

“What?!”

“Shh.” I place a finger over my mouth and signal for her to keep quiet. “Listen, this is important. Dean, my Fighter from Squadron #5, is in trouble I need to go help him, please.”

She shakes her head, her features filled with conflicting emotions. “Castiel, this is not wise, you have never used the ANIMA before you—you could—”

“I know.” I look around to make sure no one is listening to us, thankfully Inias is currently not around and everyone else is too engrossed in their own conversations. “But I have to do this, Hannah. This might be the only chance to save him…”

She squints her eyes at me. “What are you planning?”

It’s purely theoretical, and I have to gloss over the details because there is not enough time, but I tell her that I believe he is stuck and that it might be possible I could establish a link with him to stop the 5th Dimension from… crushing his mind into tiny pieces…

“Castiel, that’s insane.” Hannah looks at me perplexed. “There is absolutely no proof that’s even possible.” She complains through gritted teeth.

“Hannah, look at me.”

She does so and while at first her eyes are drilling daggers into me they soon begin to soften. “Oh, Castiel…” Her voice sounds sad and defeated.

“Put yourself in my place, Hannah. If it was Inias, wouldn’t you at least want to try?” I place my hand on her shoulder as I plead for her to help me.

Hannah doesn’t answer. Just bites her lip as if trying to somehow find a way to stay mad at me.

I decide to push her a little further. “Please, let me try.”

She sighs and nods, looking down at the floor. “Yes, Castiel, I’ll help you.”

“Thank you, Hannah.” I do my best to give her a genuine smile despite all the worry plaguing my mind.

Hannah is the one that now takes a look around before whispering. “Shh, we should hurry.”

I give her a simple nod and then we both head for the door. We rush to the ANIMA room and when we find it empty we lock the door behind us.

As I sit up in the Fighter Station I think about Dean and the many times we worked together. The prospect of seeing him again, no matter the situation, does fill me up with a bit of excitement, despite my worry.

Slowly I feel the sleep taking over me, it’s an odd sensation. Like more than falling asleep I’m resting somewhere in between sleep and wakefulness.

Eventually the world falls away, until I feel the distinct sensation of dirt beneath my shoes.

*Open, your eyes, Castiel.* I hear Hannah’s voice in the back of my mind.

I open my eyes to find myself a scant few miles outside of our base in D.C. I take a moment to stare down at my battle suit. It’s not too elaborate, solid black with some pale blue accents. It’s not as aerodynamic as Dean’s, no, it has a black jacket, a pair of boots, and a black belt, rather than being pure spandex. Most importantly of all, however, are the big set of black, iridescent wings extending behind my back.

I can’t help but smile, I guess Dean was right. These ones are mine.

“Castiel Novak?”

I turn around when I hear my name and to my surprise I find Anna. Her hair is disheveled and she looks positively exhausted.

And that’s what gives me hope that we can save Dean.

Even if I can’t save him, I trust Anna.

We’ll find Dean, I’m sure of it.


	15. It's Our Turn

Being in the 5th Dimension alone is torture. Humans were not made to withstand the mental toll of it on their own, I need someone to keep me together, but no one is there.

My consciousness bends over itself to comprehend what is going on, to understand the fact that it’s existing outside of its body and there is no longer anything linking the two back together, like a ship lost in the middle of the ocean. With no port in sight.

It will slowly make me go mad, if it hasn’t already. It will happen very slowly, like a drip, drip, drip, drip, drip…

Drip, my face is wet.

I open my eyes with difficulty, the place I have been thrown in is dark and extremely humid. There is water dripping from the ceiling.

The floor I’m resting on is hard and cold. Possibly wet… Definitely wet, there is water dripping from the ceiling!

I try to sit up but it makes my head spin. Spin figuratively, I think my face is still facing the right way.

This place I’m trapped in looks like a dungeon, where the fuck would there be a dungeon? This is not a fantasy novel.

I try to walk to the bars but the rattling of chains stop me, I must be chained to something, right? But when I look there is nothing but the wet floor.

I squint my eyes and the scenery shifts to a much more modern style prison, with a brighter light and a concrete floor rather than one made of stones. It only lasts a split second and then it’s gone, but that has to be it right? This is just the lack of a mental link messing up with my mind, I need to keep myself lucid if I have any hope of getting out of here.

As long as I keep some semblance of sanity the 5th Dimension won’t be able to kill me. Not that easily. That’s right I just have to not die.

Not die and eventually Anna can come get me.

I don’t know how long that could take, and sleeping sounds nice...

I have to stay lucid and lucid dreaming was a thing back in the day, right?

Yeah, that makes sense. Sleeping sounds nice.

I have no idea if you can dream in the 5th Dimension, unless they were nightmares, but I remember no such nightmares despite being absolutely sure I fell asleep.

I have no idea what to do with my time. I shouldn’t sleep!

Sleep is probably dangerous, right? I can’t fall asleep somewhere that’s already meant to be part of a dream. A dream within a dream is not a thing that’s possible.

No, I have to stay awake in this dungeon, find some type of entertainment. Like drawing pictures on the walls… or counting five times five.

That’s twenty five!

So I count five times to twenty five, or draw scribbles on the wall.

But sleep sounds so much better.

Maybe if I had someone to talk to I wouldn’t fall asleep. So spend the night talking to my mother… Didn’t she die though?

I shake my head, no, no. She is right here, she was just talking about how Aunt Ellen’s pie is the best there is and that Jo and Ash are coming to play tomorrow.

But when I turn around to look for her, there is no one else in my empty cell.

It’s cold but the sun is setting somewhere. Because it’s brighter than at night… or is that just the other prison?

I’m so tired, I don’t know how much time has passed since I got here. How did I even get here. I think I fell asleep, but that’s impossible, right?

I can’t dream in the 5th Dimension, and yet, I suddenly realize that this must be a dream. There is no way Cas is standing there on the other side of the bars just now. My mom was fake, he’s probably fake too...

Still I can’t help but to call out his name. “Cas?” My voice is hoarse and raw, as if I had been screaming for a long time, but I don’t remember doing that.

Cas breaks open the door of the cell I’m in by punching it, hehe, that’s very manly. And hot… yeah, Cas is so hot and dreamy. Oh, I miss him so much. 

He looks angry though, I realize, he looks really angry.

“Are you mad at me?” I start trying to tell him there is no reason to be angry. I didn’t do anything wrong, did I?

“No, Dean.” Oh, the hallucination speaks! And it sounds just like him too, gravelly and deep. He comes to kneel down next to me. “I came to save you.”

I laugh, “Save me— hey! You have wings!” I get up and try to touch them but I think I fall.

One way or another I end up in Cas’ arms instead.

“Dean…” Fake Cas sounds so hurt.

I decide to try to console him, “Why are you sad?” I poke at his shoulder.

“Because I love you, and I don’t like seeing you like this,” He says. “I hope that you can come back with me.”

I chuckle. Cas didn’t talk like that, obviously this is a fake, Cas is more demanding and I liked it that way. I frown, “I can’t come back with you, you are not Cas.” I slur out. “You are just another hallucination, like Mom and Aunt Ellen…” I suddenly don’t feel so well, as tears begin to well up in my eyes. “... They are both dead. Oh, no, Cas are you dead too?!” I grab onto his leather jacket, hoping he’ll deny it, even if he is not real.

“No, Dean, it’s me! It’s really me!” He starts to get nervous and worried and he sounds more like Cas, somehow. More like my Cas.

It freaks me out and I try to step away from him but he doesn’t let me.

Hallucinations shouldn’t feel this strong.

I feel like my eyes get crossed then, as the scenery around me shifts again, back to the modern prison instead of the weird dungeon. It makes me dizzy.

“Convince me,” I whisper.

“What?”

“Convince me that it’s you.” I insist, “Tell me something only the real Cas would know, that I don’t know.”

Cas bites his lip, but tightens his grip around me. “Do you—” his voice trembles. “—do you remember when you told me that you never read my file?”

I end up nodding, after a small moment of confusion. Telling me things I know is not going to convince me, but I decide to give him a pass.

“Well, they let me see your file, you know? Before they even approved the transfer, I mean. Before they approved the match.” Cas takes my hand in his and looks directly into my eyes. “Weeks before you saw my file I had already seen yours, and I already liked you.”

I’m not sure what to say, so I don’t say anything. I just stare at him, trying to understand what he’s talking about.

Cas doesn’t seem to be deterred by my silence, he just continues talking. “I knew you were an open Fighter, even knew you probably had multiple lovers from your transcribed stats, I wanted to think I chose you because of that.” He shakes his head. “I chose you in spite of that. Even after I’d just met you I was jealous of everyone else and I hated it. All because I strongly believed it was for the better, just like you did. I— I was scared too, but we made the choice together, remember?”

A choice? A vague memory of us peeks around the corner of my mind. Close enough for me to feel it, but too far away for me to distinguish it from a trick of the mind.

Cas moves his hand up to my cheek, desperately trying to get me to respond to him. His hand feels warm. “I can still feel you on the other end of our bond, so I came to save you…” A tear runs down his face. “Please, Dean, just let me in. Anna had to stay behind to buy us some time, but it’s not enough.” He pulls me in closer, letting our foreheads touch as another tear runs down his cheek. “Just come back with me, please.”

I feel something then, as his tear lands wet on my face. Like a knock on a door, faintly in the back of my mind. I decide to open the door, somehow, and just like that a sea of emotions come crashing into me like a tsunami. I feel every nerve in my body lights up with the realization.

This_ is_ Cas.

The real Cas.

This is the man I love.

I can see it in his eyes too, the moment when he feels my feelings pushing back against his own.

Before he can utter a single word I grab onto the nape of his neck and crash our lips together.

So what if the floor is wet, or hard, or cold? Cas is in my arms again. Not only that, but I feel our connection as surely as when we were connected to the ANIMA, the crushing pressure from the 5th Dimension trying to destroy my mind is gone.

We break away from the kiss, but we don’t move an inch further. Instead we stay there in each other’s arms, eyes closed, enjoying the reunion and the emotions we feel for one another.

*Cas, I missed you.* I try out the link between us, testing if it’s really just as strong right now as when using the ANIMA.

*I did as well, Dean.* Cas replies, not even a single trace of surprise in his voice.

I pull him in closer to me, nuzzling the crock of his neck. I chuckle. *This is amazing.*

Cas chuckles too and I open my eyes so I can look at him properly. His smile is so radiant, so perfect, and so sweet, just like I remember it.

*Honestly if this is the way that the 5th Dimension has decided to kill me, I don’t mind at all.* I joke.

Cas immediately frowns and rejects the whole concept vehemently. *Hey—* His train of thought completely changes mid sentence, however... *—your suit!* He stares down at my chest.

*What?* I follow the trail of his eyes and realize that not only has the ability to speak with him in my mind returned but so has my battlesuit. When I look back at him I also find that his is now an identical match to mine, except with electric blue accents rather than apple green. I frown, I swear he was wearing a jacket before. *Yours is different, I think.*

He looks down at himself and nods. He closes his eyes for a moment, focusing on something else before ultimately shaking his head. *Hannah is not connected to me anymore.*

I perk up at the name, my mind is still sort of jumbled from before, but it sounds familiar. I think I remember Cas mentioning her in passing before. I assume she is the one that served as an Anchor for him to get here in the first place.

*That’s right.*

I frown at him.

*What? Your thoughts are very loud.*

I’m about to reply to his smart comment when I hear three or four frantic set of footsteps in the background. A part of me panics, still too weak from spending so much time unanchored, but the other side of me feels so ready to fight.

Thankfully both sides can stay still because it turns out that the footsteps belong to Anna, Gabriel, and Baby, to my surprise.

“Oh, thank the heavens,” Anna sighs with relief. “You saved him.”

“I’m so glad you are all okay,” Cas replies with a small smile. “Is it safe outside? What happened?”

“Well turned out that the Orange douche-bag did somehow manage to take down the Queen?” Gabriel explains. “Said he threw her in jail or something, she should be somewhere down here. Baby and I are gonna look for her, right?” He turns to Anna for confirmation.

She gives him a firm nod. “You two helped me out of a difficult situation back there, so I will entrust that task to you and your four-legged companion, Gabriel Milton.”

“Hey, hey, wait a minute. Baby is mine got it?” I suddenly jump in, making Anna laugh.

Baby on the other hand barks happily and seems to take my acknowledgement of her as a sign to come over here and lick my face.

Gabriel just crosses his arms over his chest. He gets along pretty well with Baby too somehow, I know that much.

I roll my eyes at him, partially joking. “Fine, fine, I’ll let her help you potentially save the world.”

Gabriel just chuckles as he walks over to pet Baby behind her ear.

“What about Crowley?” Cas asks, directing his question to Anna. She must have filled him in while I was trying to not go completely mad.

Anna smirks. “Let’s just say Bravo Team is very much still loyal to me.”

I sigh with relief. “Things are back on track, then?”

She nods with satisfaction. “They very much are.”

“We still have to go break the last Pillar, then?” I ask.

“Yes, that’s the last thing left to do.” Anna agrees.

“Let’s get going, then!” I try to stand up but end up finding out that I can’t, my legs are still too weak from all the pain I endured before Cas found me. 

Cas doesn’t waste a single second, he picks me up with a smile. “Let me take care of that.”

Together, with Anna, we leave the prison and head up into the sky on our way back to New York.

“So… wings huh?” I tease him.

He chuckles, “I guess you were right, they are mine after all.”

I smile, pleased with that response. “They are so beautiful, Cas.”

He looks down at me and a soft shade of pink creeps up his cheeks.

I chuckle. “Come on, I mean mine’s were cool and all that. But yours are perfection.” And they are, I’m not lying, I always found Cas mesmerizing. But this? This is way out of this world, the rays of sun hit his dark feathers in such a way that I swear I can see every single color of the rainbow reflected on them.

We fly the rest of the way to New York in comfortable silence. And either our victory is inevitable already or no one expected us to head this way so soon, because there is absolutely not a single soldier standing in our way.

When we arrive at the Pillar Anna takes no time in bringing out the cube and hacking into the console. Fast as a flash Anna hacks the computer of the Pillar and opens the door to the core.

We have gotten quite efficient at this so I have to ask, before I go in. “What will happen when I burn it, huh? To us I mean.”

Anna smiles. “You’ll wake up,” she says, with a shrug.

“And Cas?”

“He’ll wake up too.”

Cas gives me a confident nod. *It’s okay, Dean.*

I take in a deep breath, “Okay.” We’ll just find each other again later. Once this is over. I can live with that.

I nod to myself, gathering my confidence. *I’ll see you later, Cas.*

I walk into the room containing the core computer and channel my mental energy into it. I can almost feel the seams of the 5th Dimension being pulled apart as it begins to unravel onto itself, and this time it can not fight back.

Soon the console is done for and with a flash of white I suddenly wake up, but I’m not in my room. The morning sun is hot, beating down on my skin and the sky… is blue.

I’m sitting at the base of the Statue of Liberty. Cas lies next to me, still sleeping. And I just look around, confused.

“Welcome to the new world, Dean Winchester!” Anna’s familiar voice calls out to me in delight, accompanied by the soft beating of big, feathery wings.“I said you’d wake up, but I didn’t say where.” She giggles.

“Wait! How am I still here?” I wonder out loud.

“Well, I’ll be honest, I wasn’t a hundred percent sure it would turn out like this.” She shrugs. “But I had a hunch. Because you and Castiel were Anchored to _each other _it only makes sense for you to wake up together.” She places a hand on her chin, as if lost in thought. “Gabriel, on the other hand should be with Sam. But we should go check just in case.”

I laugh, this damn dimensional mumbo-jumbo is not something I’ll ever fully grasp is it? Good thing it's over. “How are we gonna do that, huh? We should probably also pick Baby up and bring her home as well.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll fly you there!” She says in a chirpy tone. “If you’d allow me I’d like to maintain our friendship.”

I chuckle, shaking my head. “I thought that was a given. We have a new world to build, right? Peace treaties to form and all that diplomatic stuff you always kept talking about.”

Before Anna can answer that Cas begins to stir at my side, rubbing his eyes. “Eh? We are still here?” His voice is tinged with confusion.

“Not really,” I smile at him, pointing at the sky.

He looks up and his face fills instantly with amazement. “Dean! The sky is—”

“Blue! Just like your eyes.”

_Just like Benny’s eyes too._

Just like fourteen years ago, before this nightmare began.

Cas smiles, still looking up into the endlessly blue sky. “It’s beautiful.”

I grab his hand and look up as well. “Welcome to the new world, Cas.”

— The End —

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey!! Welcome to the New World!
> 
> Thank you so much for staying around and reading my fic to the end! I hope you enjoyed it, it was a struggle to get to this point.
> 
> That said, I have been toying with the idea of a Sequel, set in the New World. It would probably cover how Anna, Dean, and Cas go about re-building society and establishing peace between both species. 
> 
> Please, let me know if you guys would be interested in reading something like that in the comments!!
> 
> Love,  
Pie


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